title: Long-Term Outcome of Bodily Distress Syndrome in Primary Care: A Follow-Up Study on Health Care Costs, Work Disability, and Self-Rated Health.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The upcoming International Classification of Diseases, 11th Revision for primary care use suggests inclusion of a new diagnostic construct, bodily (di)stress syndrome (BDS), for individuals with medically unexplained symptoms. We aimed to explore the long-term outcome of BDS in health care costs, work disability, and self-rated health.
  
  
  METHODS
  Consecutive patients consulting their family physician for a new health problem were screened for physical and mental symptoms by questionnaires (n = 1785). A stratified subsample was examined with a standardized diagnostic interview (n = 701). Patients with single-organ BDS (n = 124) and multiorgan BDS (n = 35), and a reference group with a family physician-verified medical condition (n = 880) were included. All included patients completed a questionnaire at 3, 12, and 24 months of follow-up. Register data on health care costs and work disability were obtained after 2 and 10 years of follow-up, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients with BDS displayed poorer self-rated health and higher illness worry at index consultation and throughout follow-up than the reference group (p ≤ .001). The annual health care costs were higher in the BDS groups (2270 USD and 4066 USD) than in the reference group (1392 USD) (achieved significance level (ASL) ≤ 0.001). Both BDS groups had higher risk of sick leave during the first 2 years of follow-up (RRsingle-organ BDS = 3.0; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.8-5.0; RRmultiorgan BDS = 3.4; 95% CI = 1.5-7.5) and substantially higher risk of newly awarded disability pension than the reference group (HRsingle-organ BDS = 4.9; 95% CI = 2.8-8.4; HRmultiorgan BDS = 8.7; 95% CI = 3.7-20.7).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with BDS have poor long-term outcome of health care costs, work disability, and subjective suffering. These findings stress the need for adequate recognition and management of BDS.
authors: From the Research Unit for General Practice, Department of Public Health (Rask, Rosendal), Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark (Ørnbøl, Fink), and Research Clinic for Functional Disorders and Psychosomatics, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus N, Denmark.
authors: Mette Trollund
authors: MT
authors: Rask
authors: Eva
authors: E
authors: Ørnbøl
authors: Marianne
authors: M
authors: Rosendal
authors: Per
authors: P
authors: Fink
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003718:Denmark; D006233:Persons with Disabilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D017048:Health Care Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D000071896:Medically Unexplained Symptoms; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010415:Pensions / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012042:Registries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D018582:Sick Leave / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000191:economics / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult