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Welfare benefit utilization for people with functional somatic disorder. A population-based cohort study
Marie Weinreich Petersen1, Kaare Bro Wellnitz1, Tina Birgitte Wisbech Carstensen1
1Clinic for Functional Disorders, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark; Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark.
Journal of Psychosomatic Research
|March 4, 2025
Summary
Individuals with functional somatic disorder (FSD) utilized significantly more welfare benefits, including sickness, unemployment, and disability benefits, compared to the general population. This highlights FSD as a disabling condition with considerable societal costs.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
- Social Medicine
Background:
- Functional somatic disorder (FSD) presents significant socioeconomic challenges.
- High-quality data on FSD's impact on welfare benefit use in the general population is limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate welfare benefit utilization (sickness, unemployment, disability pension) among individuals with FSD.
- To compare benefit use in FSD patients with the general population and those with other severe physical diseases.
Main Methods:
- Utilized nationwide Danish registers (DanFunD study, Danish Register for Evaluation of Marginalization).
- Included 9656 adults, analyzing welfare benefit data over 10 years pre- and 4 years post-study.
- Employed sex- and age-adjusted regression with bootstrap resampling for analysis.
Main Results:
- Individuals with FSD received significantly more annual weeks of sickness benefit (3.9), unemployment benefit (1.3), and disability pension (3.8) compared to controls.
- This increased benefit utilization persisted post-diagnosis and was also observed in those diagnosed via interviews.
- FSD patients showed higher welfare use than individuals with other severe physical diseases.
Conclusions:
- Functional somatic disorder is a disabling condition with substantial individual and societal impact.
- Increased welfare benefit use underscores the significant socioeconomic burden of FSD.
- Emphasizes the need for timely diagnosis and effective treatment strategies for FSD.
