Feelings and emotions are influenced by cultural factors. there are no specific words to refer to the emotional states of individuals in some cultures and sub-cultures around the world.Somatic metaphors and complains are the main outlets for emotional discharge in these cultures.

Analysis of presenting symptoms of the patients suffering from depression referred to the psychiatric clinic of Shiraz university of Medical Sciences.

Better understanding of distribution of the patient's chief complaints among people with different sex, marital status, place of residency and education.

300 patients with major depressive disorders referred to our clinic were selected by simple sampling. Diagnosis of the disorder was made based on the DSM-IV-TR criteria after a psychiatric interview. These patients had no history of any substance abuse or dependence. Also, their symptoms could not be explained by a general medical condition or other psychiatric conditions. Through psychiatric interview, we assessed the chief complaints and other presenting symptoms of these patients and then compared them according to such variables as sex, age, marital status, place of residency and education.

The most frequent complaints of the patients was headache and pain in other areas of body. Also this study showed a significant relationship between the chief complaint (physical vs. mental) and sex, marital status and place of residency.

Pain and other somatic complaints are important presenting problem among depressive patients.Paying proper attention to somatic complaints in some cultures, can lead to better understanding of patients and prevent unnecessary expensive interventions.