Fibromyalgia: a new facet of the post-COVID-19 syndrome spectrum? Results from a web-based survey, 2021, Ursini et al

Abstract
Objective Postacute COVID-19 syndrome (PACS) is an emerging entity characterised by a large array of manifestations, including musculoskeletal complaints, fatigue and cognitive or sleep disturbances. Since similar symptoms are present also in patients with fibromyalgia (FM), we decided to perform a web-based cross-sectional survey aimed at investigating the prevalence and predictors of FM in patients who recovered from COVID-19.

Methods Data were anonymously collected between 5 and 18 April 2021. The collection form consisted of 28 questions gathering demographic information, features and duration of acute COVID-19, comorbid diseases, and other individual’s attributes such as height and weight. The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Survey Criteria and the Italian version of the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire completed the survey.

Results A final sample of 616 individuals (77.4% women) filled the form 6±3 months after the COVID-19 diagnosis. Of these, 189 (30.7%) satisfied the ACR survey criteria for FM (56.6% women). A multivariate logistic regression model including demographic and clinical factors showed that male gender (OR: 9.95, 95% CI 6.02 to 16.43, p<0.0001) and obesity (OR: 41.20, 95% CI 18.00 to 98.88, p<0.0001) were the strongest predictors of being classified as having post-COVID-19 FM. Hospital admission rate was significantly higher in men (15.8% vs 9.2%, p=0.001) and obese (19.2 vs 10.8%, p=0.016) respondents.

Conclusion Our data suggest that clinical features of FM are common in patients who recovered from COVID-19 and that obesity and male gender affect the risk of developing post-COVID-19 FM.

https://rmdopen.bmj.com/content/7/3/e001735

 

see also article
A Third of Long Haulers Have ‘FibroCOVID’

https://www.painnewsnetwork.org/stories/2021/9/1/a-third-of-long-haulers-have-fibrocovid-nbsp

 

Male gender? Uh, I wonder if this is purely an artifact of women being more commonly dismissed as anxiety, so that two similar cases would make men a bit more likely to be considered whether they fit criteria.

Although 100% without the context of Covid making people look for it, things would have been very different, very likely the possible role of any virus would have been dismissed with prejudice and not even considered. As usual, this has little to do with what is happening to the patients, rather it's who interprets it and how.

 

Male gender when 77% were female respondents ?
Does misogyny have a linear scale?

 

Fibromyalgia was assessed not by clinical examination but by a questionnaire (ACR survey criteria) where patients are said to have fibromyalgia if they score above a certain threshold.

Regarding more males meeting FM criteria, the authors write:

"Strikingly, we found a high percentage of men (43%) in respondents meeting criteria for FM. Subanalysis of our data revealed that male gender was associated with surrogate measures of COVID-19 severity, as suggested by a significantly higher rate of patients requiring hospital admission."​

 

Given that hospitalization rates are low, about, what 5%, this appears to be a sampling artifact, then.