2026 American Academy of Neurology Abstract Website

Objective:

To describe the epidemiological characteristics of Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) patients admitted to an urban single safety-net hospital from 1/1/2015-7/29/2025.

Background:

Epidemiological patterns in functional neurological disorders remain poorly defined. While studies have explored demographic factors such as gender and race, further research is needed regarding patient demographics and comorbidity profiles within safety-net hospitals that serve vulnerable and diverse populations.

Design/Methods:

This observational, retrospective study identified 1493 FND patients who met the ICD-10 (F44.4, F44.5, F44.6, F44.7, F44.89, F44.9) criteria admitted to a single, urban, safety-net hospital in the past decade. Demographic data (age, sex, race, education) and past medical history were collected. Overall baseline characteristics of study participants were summarized as frequencies and percentages for categorical variables and as means and standard deviations for continuous variables.

Results:

Among 1493 patients observed, 1073 (71.9%) were adult middle-aged females, with a median age of 41. 820 patients (54.9%) graduated from high school or above. 568 patients (38%) were White and 539 (36.1%) were African American. 821 patients (55%) were under public health care. 254 patients (17%) were non-English speakers. 157 patients (10.5%) were readmitted for FND. Hypertension (25.1%), history of depression (24%), history of anxiety disorder (21.5%), Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (11.7%), and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (11%) were common comorbidities.

Conclusions:

In our study cohort, patients with FND were predominantly middle-aged female adults. Racial distribution was similar to the overall demographics of our hospital, and rates of educational attainment were generally low. Although the psychiatric comorbidities we found aligned with those in the literature, the high prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors warrants further investigation.