Mental and psychosomatic work injuries in Sweden

In Sweden, persons who incur illness or injury at work or on the way to or from work may claim indemnity under a work injuries insurance scheme. A new law in 1977 included mental and psychosomatic illnesses. Looking into the records of reported work injuries in Gothenburg 10 years later, we found 67 cases diagnosed as mental or psychosomatic illnesses. One third of these were accepted as work injuries. The cited harmful influence mostly referred to mental and/or physical strain from work itself. Traumatic incidents, maltreatment by the employer, and persecution also were accepted as harmful influences. Comparison with an earlier study revealed that although the rate of approbation for mental and psychosomatic work-related illnesses (about 30%) is much lower than for all work-related illnesses (about 90%), there has been a considerable increase over the years.