Impact of Fibromyalgia Syndrome on the Severity of Migraine Without Aura

Migraine is a common neurological disorder associated with periodical disability and impaired quality of life. Recent large epidemiological studies have shown high levels of concurrency between fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and migraine.

Due to the possible relationship between migraine and FMS, we aimed to measure the effect of FMS on the severity of migraine without aura (MWO).

This is a cross-sectional study of 80 patients with MWO who were referred to Isfahan Al-Zahra Clinic of Neurology. To monitor the patients, the researcher asked them to complete the demographic data and questionnaires, including FSQ-P for diagnosis FMS, HIT-6 for the severity of migraine headache, and MSQ for measuring the quality of life, with their written consent.

Of 80 patients with MWO, 22.5% suffered from FMS. Based on our study, elderly patients with MWO were more likely to be affected by FMS. Additionally, the average quality of life score in the migraineurs with FMS was significantly lower than the migraineurs without FMS. According to our findings, the severity of migraine was not significantly different between patients with and without FMS. In addition, age (OR = 1.1, 95% CI = 1.006-1.2, P < 0.001] and quality of life (OR = 1.03, 95% CI = 1.002 - 1.07, P = 0.04) were the predictive factors for FMS in patients suffering from migraine.

The findings of this study may support that the presence of FMS had no effect on the severity of migraine; however, further studies are needed to clarify this claim.