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Affective distress and fibromyalgia
Kemal Sayar1, Huseyin Gulec, Murat Topbas
1Daradeniz Technical University Medical School, Trabzon, Turkey. mkemalsayar@superonline.com
Swiss Medical Weekly
|July 10, 2004
Summary
Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is linked to anxiety, while rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with depression. Psychological distress is not unique to FMS, but its manifestation differs between FMS and RA patients.
Area of Science:
- Rheumatology
- Psychiatry
- Clinical Psychology
Background:
- Conflicting reports exist on psychiatric disorders in fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) patients.
- Previous studies comparing FMS with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients yield inconsistent psychological data.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare psychological measures (anxiety, depression, disability) in FMS patients, RA patients, and healthy controls.
- To determine if psychological distress is specific to FMS or shared with RA.
Main Methods:
- A case-control study involving 50 FMS patients, 20 RA patients, and 42 healthy controls.
- Logistic regression models and ROC curves were used to analyze associations between psychological measures and disease status.
Main Results:
- Anxiety scores were the strongest predictor for identifying FMS.
- Depression scores were more indicative of RA.
- No significant differences in age or disability scores were found between FMS and RA patients.
Conclusions:
- Affective distress is present in both FMS and RA, but its pattern differs.
- Anxiety appears more strongly associated with FMS, whereas depression is linked to RA.
- Further research is needed on how patients integrate affective distress into their lives.