Fibromyalgia Significantly More Common In Patients With Certain Diseases

The prevalence of fibromyalgia is significantly higher in individuals with certain diseases, including type 2 diabetes and Behcet syndrome, than in the general population, according to the results of a recent study.

Using data from 65 studies including 3,609,810 participants, researchers aimed to determine the prevalence of fibromyalgia in the general population. The majority of the studies utilized the American College of Rheumatology criteria for diagnosis of fibromyalgia.
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Overall, the prevalence of fibromyalgia was 1.78% among the general population, 3.98% among women and only 0.01% among men.

Rates of the disease were significantly higher among patients in internal medicine and rheumatology clinics (15.2%), those with type 2 diabetes (14.8%), irritable bowel syndrome (12.9%), patients on hemodialysis (6.3%), and in patients with Behcet syndrome (80%).

“This meta-analysis showed that prevalence of fibromyalgia in general population was significantly lower than that in populations with some diseases,” the researchers concluded.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Heidari F, Afshari M, Moosazedeh M. Prevalence of fibromyalgia in general population and patients, a systematic review and meta-analysis [published online April 26, 2017]. M Rheumatol Int. doi:10.1007/s00296-017-3725-2.