Perspectives of physical medicine and rehabilitation specialists and rheumatologists towards fibromyalgia syndrome in Turkey

Objective: Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a chronic disorder characterized by widespread, unexplained pain in the muscles, including the head, neck, and sides of the hips, and fatigue. We aimed to evaluate the familiarity of physical medicine and rehabilitation and rheumatology physicians with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) in Turkey by means of a survey and to determine if these physician groups followed the 1990 FMS diagnostic criteria and 2010 FMS classification criteria for diagnosis. Material and Methods: The survey questions consisted of two parts; the first part consisted of 10 questions about demographics and professional experience, as well as the number of patients who had been diagnosed, treated, and followed up with in the prior 3 months by physicians. The second part consisted of 15 questions about perspectives on the 1990 FMS diagnostic criteria and 2010 FMS classification criteria. Results: One hundred and seventy one physicians participated in this survey. The majority of physicians 105 (99.1%) from physical medicine and rehabilitation and 59 (90.8%) rheumatologists could diagnose FMS. The rate of diagnosis and the rate of follow-up for FMS patients were significantly higher with physical medicine and rehabilitation specialists than with rheumatologists (p= 0.013 and p = 0.000; respectively) and were statistically significant. Conclusion: Differences in the awareness and descriptions of as well as approaches to FMS by physical medicine rehabilitation physicians and rheumatologists were examined in this study.