Table 1.
Sociodemographic, lifestyle, and clinical characteristics of patients with functional somatic syndromes (FSS) and healthy controls.
| Patients (n = 33) | Controls (n = 30) | Statistics | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 43 (32) | 32 (25) | U = -1.086, p = 0.278 |
| Body mass index (BMI) | 23 (4) | 22 (3) | U = -1.707, p = 0.088 |
| Smoking (yes) | 7 (21%) | 6 (20%) | χ2= 0.033, p = 0.856 |
| Functional somatic syndrome | |||
| Chronic fatigue syndrome | 18 (55%) | 0 | n.a. |
| Fibromyalgia syndrome | 17 (52%) | 0 | n.a. |
| Irritable bowel syndrome | 20 (61%) | 0 | n.a. |
| Medication | |||
| Analgesics | 7 (21%) | 0 | n.a. |
| Antidepressants | 3 (9%) | 0 | n.a. |
| Antihypertensives | 5 (15%) | 0 | n.a. |
| Fatigue (MFI) | |||
| General | 14 (5) | 6 (3) | U = -6.252, p < 0.001 |
| Physical | 12 (8) | 5 (2) | U = -5.845, p < 0.001 |
| Mental | 11 (7) | 5 (3) | U = -5.157, p < 0.001 |
| Early life adversity (CTQ) | |||
| Emotional neglect | 10 (30%) | 6 (20%) | χ2= 0.604, p = 0.437 |
| Physical neglect | 11 (33%) | 7 (23%) | χ2= 0.493, p = 0.483 |
| Emotional abuse | 14 (42%) | 6 (20%) | χ2= 3.348, p = 0.067 |
| Physical abuse | 4 (12%) | 5 (17%) | χ2= 0.336, p = 0.721 |
| Sexual abuse | 6 (18%) | 5 (17%) | χ2= 0.008, p = 0.929 |
Descriptive statistics are given as median and interquartile range (IQR) or frequencies. Group comparisons were conducted using Mann–Whitney U-tests, Pearson’s chi-squared test, and Fisher’s exact test. CTQ, childhood trauma questionnaire (cut-offs for moderate to severe childhood trauma); MFI, multidimensional fatigue inventory (score range 5–20).