Self-reported anxiety, general medical conditions, and disability bed days.

Objective: This study examined the effect of self-reported anxiety on the number of days persons with various general medical conditions spend in bed owing to disability.

Method: Self-reported medical illness and disability data from a nationally representative household survey sample (N = 20,884) were analyzed.

Results: Among respondents with general medical conditions, those with self-reported anxiety had a nearly fourfold greater length of disability (mean = 18.0 bed days) than the nonanxious respondents (mean = 4.8 bed days). After adjustment for differences in demographic characteristics and burden of general medical illness, anxiety was associated with an additional 3.8 bed days.

Conclusions: Self-reported anxiety in combination with general medical conditions may be associated with extensive functional impairment.