Multidimensional fatigue, somatic symptoms and depression

Objectives. Assess the moderating role of somatization on depression in the perception of fatigue for a healthy adult population. Design. Correlational survey. Methods. Several fatigue questionnaires, a mental health inventory, somatic complaints and demographic data were collected from a targeted, randomly selected adult sample (N = 278). Results. Depression levels were positively and significantly related to all aspects of fatigue except fatigue that responds to rest and sleep (i.e. tiredness). When high levels of depression were coupled with somatization, fatigue complaints were more severe. Conclusions. Even within a non-patient population, somatization and depression had interactive effects on fatigue. Somatization increased fatigue level for the relatively dysphoric individuals.