Table 2.

Prevalence and characteristics of participants with and without bodily distress syndrome.

	No BDS	Single-organ BDS	CP subtype	GI subtype	MS subtype	GS subtype	Multi-organ BDS
	N = 1177 89.5% (88.1–90.7)	N = 327 8.5% (7.3–9.7)	N = 47 1.3% (0.9–1.9)	N = 173 4.0% (3.3–4.8)	N = 107 3.0% (2.3–3.8)	N = 111 3.1% (2.4–4.0)	N = 86 2.0% (1.6–2.6)
Basic
Age, Median (IQR)	55.0 (45.0–64.0)	52.0 (42.0–60.0)	51.0 (37.0–59.0)	53.0 (42.0–61.1)	53.0 (47.0–60.0)	49.0 (40.0–56.0)	48.5 (39.0–57.0)
Sex; Women vs men, RR*	1 (Ref.)	1.3 (1.2–1.4)	1.2 (1.0–1.5)	1.3 (1.1–1.4)	1.4 (1.2–1.5)	1.3 (1.2–1.5)	1.5 (1.3–1.7)
Social**
Cohabiting, RR	1 (Ref.)	0.9 (0.8–1.0)	0.9 (0.7–1.1)	0.9 (0.8–1.0)	0.9 (0.8–1.0)	0.9 (0.7–1.0)	0.9 (0.7–1.0)
Formerly employed, RR	1 (Ref.)	1.3 (1.1–1.6)	1.4 (0.9–2.2)	1.3 (1.0–1.6)	1.7 (1.3–2.3)	1.5 (1.2–2.1)	1.6 (1.2–2.2)
Never been employed, RR	1 (Ref.)	0.8 (0.3–2.0)	0.7 (0.1–4.8)	0.4 (0.1–1.8)	2.6 (0.8–8.1)	0.6 (0.2–3.0)	2.5 (1.1–6.1)
Vocational training, OR	1 (Ref.)	1.0 (0.8–1.3)	1.2 (0.7–2.1)	1.1 (0.8–1.5)	0.9 (0.6–1.3)	1.0 (0.7–1.5)	1.0 (0.7–1.6)
Physical health**
Poor self-perceived healtha, RR	1 (Ref.)	2.3 (1.9–2.8)	2.2 (1.5–3.4)	2.0 (1.5–2.6)	2.7 (2.1–3.5)	3.0 (2.4–3.8)	3.8 (3.0–4.8)
Being limited in daily activitiesb, RR	1 (Ref.)	2.1 (1.8–2.5)	2.1 (1.5–3.1)	1.6 (1.3–2.1)	2.6 (2.1–3.3)	2.7 (2.1–3.3)	2.9 (2.3–3.5)
GP diagnosis and comorbidity**
Having FSS according to a physicianc, RR	1 (Ref.)	2.3 (1.9–2.6)	2.0 (1.4–2.9)	2.7 (2.3–3.2)	2.2 (1.8–2.7)	1.9 (1.5–2.5)	2.6 (2.1–3.2)
Physical comorbidity, RR	1 (Ref.)	1.3 (1.3–1.5)	1.4 (1.2–1.7)	1.4 (1.3–1.5)	1.2 (1.1–1.4)	1.3 (1.2–1.5)	1.3 (1.1–1.5)
Mental comorbidity, RR	1 (Ref.)	2.8 (2.0–4.0)	3.1 (1.7–5.8)	2.7 (1.8–4.1)	2.5 (1.5–4.2)	3.9 (2.6–5.9)	4.3 (2.7–6.6)

Abbreviations: BDS = bodily distress syndrome; CP = cardiopulmonary; GI = gastrointestinal; MS = musculoskeletal; GS = general symptoms type.

IQR = interquartile range; RR = relative risk; OR = odds ratio.

*Adjusted for age.

**Adjusted for age and sex.

^aFair or poor health⁸⁹.

^bAll of/most of/some of the time⁸⁹.

^cReceived a diagnosis of at least one of the following: Irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, whiplash associated disorders, and multiple chemical sensitivity by a general practitioner.

Bold: Significantly different from participants not having BDS (P < 0.05).