Psychosomatic complaints at age 15-16 and subsequent depression and anxiety disorders

Abstract Background In recent years, the prevalence of self-reported mental health issues such as psychosomatic complaints has risen among adolescents in several countries, including Sweden. Despite this trend, a gap in the understanding remains regarding the implications of these complaints, including their ability to predict more severe mental health conditions. Depression and anxiety represent common mental health disorders among youth today, significantly affecting daily functioning. In light of this, the current study aims to investigate the association between self-reported psychosomatic complaints at age 15-16 and the likelihood of being diagnosed with depression or anxiety by age 20. Methods Data was drawn from Futura01, a cohort study of Swedish adolescents who attended grade 9 in 2017 (n = 5,225). Information on psychiatric diagnoses was obtained from the Swedish National Patient Register. Psychosomatic complaints were captured through self-reported frequencies of headache, stomach ache, and difficulties falling asleep, which were aggregated into an index (ranging from 3-15). Covariates included sex, parental education, parental country of birth, family type, and prior diagnoses of ADHD, depression, and anxiety. Binary logistic regression analyses were performed. Results The findings show that higher levels of psychosomatic complaints at age 15-16 were prospectively associated with increased odds of being diagnosed with depression (OR = 1.28, 95% CI 1.22-1.34) as well as anxiety (OR = 1.30, 95% CI 1.25-1.35) by age 20, even after adjusting for prior diagnoses and other covariates. Conclusions This study highlights the potential for psychosomatic complaints during adolescence to act as early indicators of future mental health disorders. Recognising the importance of these complaints and implementing public health interventions targeting mental health issues among youth could help improve mental health outcomes in late adolescence and young adulthood. Key messages • Adolescents reporting frequent psychosomatic complaints at age 15-16 were more likely to receive subsequent specialised care due to a depression or anxiety diagnosis in a Swedish sample. • Interventions directed at youth experiencing frequent psychosomatic complaints may have a beneficial impact on their future mental health outcomes.