Prevalence of Fibromyalgia in patients referring to Kerman Rheumatology clinic from 1995 to 1998

Fibromyalgia (FM), a chronic musculoskeletal syndrome, is characterized by widespread pain and multiple tenderness in the body. Clinical studies show a wide range of prevalence (1% to 20%). There is no published data about the prevalence of FM in Kerman. In this descriptive study demographic variables and the final clinical diagnosis of 8270 cases referring to Kerman rheumatology clinic from 1995 to 1998 were reviewed. These 1046 cases fulfilled ACR 1990 criteria for FM (12.46%). The mean age of FM cases was 39.6±11.1 years (mean±SD) and 75% of them were 30-60 years old. 95.2% of cases were female and the mean of disease duration was 4.2±3.8 mounths (minimum and maximum were 3 and 50 mounths respectively). There is no statistically singnificant difference between male and female in age and duration of disease. The corelation coefficient between age and duration of disease was 0.047 (P=0.13). Fibromyalgia is a common diagnosis among patients referred to clinics which needs more attention for correct diagnosis. Information on age and sex distribution of FM cases might help physicians to treat rheumatic patients and women more precisely.