Harm Avoidance and Self-Directedness Characterize Fibromyalgic Patients and the Symptom Severity

Abstract

Objective: Evidence in the literature suggests peculiar personality traits for fibromyalgic (FM) patients, and it has been suggested that personality characteristics may be involved in patients’ different symptomatic events and responses to treatment. The aim of the study is to investigate the personality characteristics of Italian FM patients and to explore the possibility of clustering them considering both personality traits and clinical characteristics.Design: The study used a cross-sectional methodology and involved a control group. A self-assessment procedure was used for data gathering. The study included 87 female FM patients and 83 healthy females. Patients were approached and interviewed in person during a psychiatric consultation. Healthy people were recruited from general practices with previous telephone contact.Main Outcome Measures: Participants responded to the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Temperament and Character Inventory, the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire and the Short-Form-36 Health Survey.Results: FM patients scored significantly different from healthy participants on the Harm avoidance (HA), Novelty seeking (NS) and Self-directedness (SD). Two clusters were identified: patients in Cluster1 (n = 37) had higher scores on HA and lower scores on RD, SD, and Cooperativeness and reported more serious fibromyalgia and more severe anxious–depressive symptomatology than did patients in Cluster2 (n = 46).Conclusion: This study confirms the presence of certain personality traits in the FM population. In particular, high levels of HA and low levels of SD characterize a subgroup of FM patients with more severe anxious–depressive symptomatology. According to these findings, personality assessment could be useful in the diagnostic process to tailor therapeutic interventions to the personality characteristics.

Distinctive personality profiles of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome patients

“…They were as high as healthy controls in the character traits of SD and CO, and in the temperament trait of PS, and as low in the temperament trait of HA ( Cloninger & Zohar, 2011 ). This result is very similar to that of Leombruni et al (2016) who also found two distinct personality clusters for FM patients, with the bigger cluster characterized by resilient personality profile and emotional style. The first group of patients was the mal-adapted cluster, characterized by higher levels of HA and alexithymia, higher frequency of type D, and lower levels of CO, SD, PS, RD positivity and social support.…”

Peer Review #2 of "Distinctive personality profiles of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome patients (v0.1)"

“…Manuscript to be reviewed They were as high as healthy controls in the character traits of SD and CO, and in the temperament trait of PS, and as low in the temperament trait of HA. This result is very similar to that of Leombruni et al (Leombruni et al 2016) who also found two distinct personality clusters for FM patients, with the bigger cluster characterized by resilient personality profile and emotional style. The first group of patients was the mal-adapted cluster, characterized by higher levels of HA and alexithymia, higher frequency of type D, and lower levels of CO, SD, PS, RD positivity and social support.…”

Peer Review #3 of "Distinctive personality profiles of fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome patients (v0.1)"

“…Individuals in this cluster had a frequency of type D personality which was similar to the general population; high as healthy controls in the character traits of SD and CO, and in the temperament trait of PS, and as low in the temperament trait of HA. (Cloninger & Zohar 2011) This result is very similar to that ofLeombruni et al (Leombruni et al 2016) who also found two distinct personality clusters for FM patients, with the bigger cluster characterized by resilient personality profile and emotional style. The first group of patients was the mal-adapted cluster, characterized by higher levels of HA and alexithymia, higher frequency of type D, and lower levels of CO, SD, PS, RD positivity and social support.…”