Abstract
The purpose of the study was to investigate the association between incident self-reported
fibromyalgia (FM) and prior somatic diseases, lifestyle factors, and health behaviors
among 3,136 women who participated in 2 cohort studies 25 to 26 years apart (the Adventist
Health Study 1 and 2). The women completed a comprehensive lifestyle and medical history
questionnaire at baseline in 1976. Information on new diagnosis of doctor-told FM
was obtained at the second survey in 2002. A total of 136 women reported a diagnosis
of FM during 25 years of follow-up, giving a period incidence of 43/1,000 or 1.72/1000
per year. In multivariable logistic regression analyses, a significant, dose-response
association was found with number of allergies with OR of 1.61 (95% CI: .92–2.83)
and 3.99 (95% CI: 2.31–6.88), (P[trend] < .0001), respectively, for 1 and 2 or more allergies versus none. A history
of hyperemesis gravidarum was also associated with FM with OR of 1.32 (95% CI: .75–2.32)
and 1.73 (95% CI: .99–3.03), (P[trend] < .05), respectively, for some or all pregnancies versus none. A positive
association with smoking was also found with OR of 2.37 (95% CI: 1.33–4.23) for ever
smokers versus never smokers. No significant association was found with number of
surgeries, history of peptic ulcer, or taking medications to control various symptoms.
Perspective
Smoking as well as prevalent allergies, and a history of hyperemesis gravidarum, seem
to predict development of FM in women during 25 years of follow-up. This information
may help in identifying persons at high risk of developing FM and thus initiate effective
prevention strategies.
Key words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: April 19, 2010
Accepted:
January 21,
2010
Received in revised form:
December 7,
2009
Received:
August 12,
2009
Footnotes
Supported in part by NIH grants 2RO1 – CA 14703-15 and 5RO1 CA 094594.
Identification
Copyright
© 2010 American Pain Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
