Understanding The Unexplained: South Asian Young People & MUS

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Understanding The Unexplained: How South Asian Young People Make Sense of Medically Unexplained Symptoms (MUS)

  • IRAS ID

    271916

  • Contact name

    Sanaa Kadir

  • Contact email

    sk772@leicester.ac.uk

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    0 years, 8 months, 31 days

  • Research summary

    This research aims to explore how South Asian young people make sense of MUS, what influences this and how they cope with their symptoms.

    Medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) are physical health symptoms which cannot be explained from a physical health perspective. Symptoms can include fatigue, headaches, pain etc., however after investigations medical professionals do not feel that a physical health diagnosis can explain the symptoms. It may therefore be felt that psychological factors are causing or perpetuating the symptoms. Having MUS as a child/young person can have further-reaching implications than as an adult. It is therefore important to support these young people to better cope with their symptoms.

    Research indicates young people cope better with their MUS when they have a shared narrative with their family and professionals about the symptoms. Often, however, these narratives can be different, particularly when the young person is from a different background. For South Asian people in particular, symptoms can be medicalised and distress expressed through physical symptoms. Therefore, when South Asian young people are informed that their symptoms are not medical this may cause difficulty. This can be made worse by the fact that professionals also reject other cultural explanations. This may make it difficult for South Asian young people to make sense of symptoms and cope with these.

    Service-users accessing services for support with their symptoms who have MUS will be recruited. The primary inclusion criteria will include the participants being of South Asian origin and over the age of 10 years. Semi-structured interviews lasting approximately 30 minutes will be conducted. The interview will be recorded and then transcribed, using Thematic Analysis to explore themes in what the young people have experienced.

    It is hoped that this will inform services about South Asian young people’s lived experiences and be used to create an information booklet.

  • REC name

    East Midlands - Leicester South Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    20/EM/0050

  • Date of REC Opinion

    7 Apr 2020

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion