Table 2.
Descriptive statistics of somatic symptoms and stress markers by mental health condition.
| SSD | DEP | Test parameter (df) | p | ICC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M ± SD (n) | M ± SD (n) | ||||
| Intensity of somatic symptomsa | 26.8 ± 23.9 (1848) | 15.0 ± 20.1 (1773) | t = 16.1 (3619) | < 0.001 | 0.44 |
| Impairment by somatic symptomsa | 24.6 ± 26.1 (1848) | 16.2 ± 23.4 (1773) | t = 10.1 (3619) | < 0.001 | 0.36 |
| Subjective stressb | 1.5 ± 1.0 (1848) | 2.0 ± 1.1 (1773) | t = − 12.9 (3619) | < 0.001 | 0.27 |
| Salivary cortisol (nmol/l)c | 4.9 ± 5.3 (1792) | 4.7 ± 5.6 (1711) | t = 3.4 (3501) | 0.001 | 0.18 |
| Salivary alpha-amylase (U/min)c,d | 39.0 ± 45.6 (1713) | 38.0 ± 44.2 (1648) | t = 1.1 (3359) | 0.28 | 0.49 |
Values are averages across individuals and across measurement time points. DEP depressive disorders, SSD somatic symptom disorder, ICC intraclass correlation coefficient.
aAssessed on a visual analog scale ranging from 0 (‘not at all’) to 100 (‘strongest imaginable’/‘very much’).
bAssessed on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (‘not at all’) to 4 (‘very much’).
cGroup comparisons based on transformed values (ln(x) + 10).
dCorrected for salivary flow rate. Significant estimates (p < 0.05) are marked in bold.