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Updated: Feb 15, 2026

Demonstration of Cutaneous Allodynia in Association with Chronic Pelvic Pain
Published on: June 23, 2009
Diagnostic confounders of chronic widespread pain: not always fibromyalgia
Winfried Häuser1,2, Serge Perrot3, Claudia Sommer4
1Department Internal Medicine I, Klinikum Saarbrücken, Saarbrücken, Germany.
Introduction:
Chronic widespread pain (CWP) is the defining feature of fibromyalgia (FM), a worldwide prevalent condition. Chronic widespread pain is, however, not pathognomonic of FM, and other conditions may present similarly with CWP, requiring consideration of a differential diagnosis.
Objectives:
To conduct a literature search to identify medical conditions that may mimic FM and have highlighted features that may differentiate these various conditions from FM.
Methods:
A comprehensive literature search from 1990 through September 2016 was conducted to identify conditions characterized by CWP.
Results:
Conditions that may mimic FM may be categorized as musculoskeletal, neurological, endocrine/metabolic, psychiatric/psychological, and medication related. Characteristics pertaining to the most commonly identified confounding diagnoses within each category are discussed; clues to enable clinical differentiation from FM are presented; and steps towards a diagnostic algorithm for mimicking conditions are presented.
Conclusion:
Although the most likely reason for a complaint of CWP is FM, this pain complaint can be a harbinger of illness other than FM, prompting consideration of a differential diagnosis. This review should sensitize physicians to a broad spectrum of conditions that can mimic FM.
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