"Somatoform" or "functional" syndromes are those that present with physical symptoms, not explained by well-recognized medical illness. Such symptoms are common in all settings and studies have reported that they accounted for one-fifth of all new presentations in primary care. Literature suggests that they are associated with significant levels of psychological distress, disability, impairments in quality of life and high levels of healthcare utilization. Research also suggests that medically unexplained symptoms cause similar (or higher) levels of disability than medically explained symptoms in primary care settings. There have been a number of studies that have looked at the cognitive and behavioural basis of somatisation, and treatment strategies have been trialed based upon a cognitive behavior therapy (CBT)-led approach for these patients.