Weather, beliefs about weather, and disease severity among patients with fibromyalgia

Hagglund, Kristofer J.; Deuser, William E.; Buckelew, Susan P.; Hewett, John E.; Kay, Donald R.

doi:10.1002/art.1790070306

Cited by 39 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…10 31 Weather sensitivity has been associated with the personality characteristics of the patient. 7 Personality as a factor in FM http://ard.bmj.com/ pain is uncertain, although high levels of neuroticism are often associated with symptoms of depression and anxiety. Anxiety and depression are associated with the reporting of greater subjective pain.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…9 Hagglund et al reported that most patients with fibromyalgia believe that weather affects their symptoms, and noted a strong relationship between patients' weather beliefs and self reported pain scores. 7 The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the daily weather and pain variations in patients with FM. We focused upon the commonly used weather parameters (barometric pressure, cloudiness, wind speed, relative humidity, temperature, and sunlight).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Weather and the pain in fibromyalgia: are they related?

Fors

2002

Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases

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Objectives: To examine the association between fibromyalgic pain and weather to determine the nature of their interrelationship. Methods: The daily pain ratings of 55 female patients previously diagnosed with fibromyalgia were recorded on visual analogue scales (VAS) over 28 days. These ratings were then related to the official weather parameters and a composite weather variable using time series methodology. Effect sizes r were calculated from the t values and df. Results: A composite weather variable did not significantly predict changes in pain, either the same day (t=−1.15, df=1483, p=0.25) or on the next day (t=−1.55, df=1483, p=0.12)-that is, the weather was not a factor for changes in the subjective pain of FM. Patients' pain did not predict weather change in this sample, and neither same day (t=−0. 69, df=1483, p<0.49) nor previous day pain (t=−1.31, df=1483, p<0.19) predicted weather changes. A post hoc exploratory analysis showed that those with <10 years of fibromyalgia experienced significantly greater weather sensitivity to pain (t=− 2.73, df=389, p<0.006) than those with longer illness. Conclusion: A statistically significant relationship between fibromyalgic pain and the weather was not found in this sample, although it is possible that a group of patients with less chronic fibromyalgia might be weather sensitive.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

Weather and the pain in fibromyalgia: are they related?

Fors

2002

Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases

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“…Pain symptoms may be modulated by various factors including psychological stress, excessive physical activity, fatigue, or changes in the weather [24]. Some patients also report a superficial burning quality to pain with increased sensitivity to painful stimuli-termed hyperalgesia, and may also have features of allodynia or pain following an innocuous stimulation such as touch [25].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Clinical Concept of Fibromyalgia as a Changing Paradigm in the Past 20 Years

Fitzcharles

Yunus

2012

Pain Research and Treatment

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Fibromyalgia (FMS) is a valid clinical condition that affects 2%–4% of the population with a pivot symptom of widespread body pain. The cause and cure of FMS are as yet unknown. The concept of FMS has evolved over the past two decades to incorporate symptoms beyond pain as contributing to the global spectrum of suffering. FMS is now recognized to be grounded in the neurological domain with evidence of dysregulation of pain processing. Appreciation of the neurophysiologic mechanisms operative in FMS has contributed to rational treatment recommendations, although a “gold standard treatment” does not currently exist. Ideal treatments for FMS patients should be individualized with emphasis on active patient participation, good health practices, and multimodal intervention, incorporating nonpharmacologic and pharmacologic treatments. Predictors of outcome, which is favourable in over 50% of patients, are unknown, but those with better outcome do more physical activity and use fewer medications.

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“…There are a number of studies concerning WS related to conditions such as chronic pain (Jamison et al 1995;Shutty et al 1992), rheumatoid arthritis (Gorin et al 1999;Drane et al 1997;Hagglund et al 1994) or psychological impairments (Vadzyuk and Mikula 1997;Faust and Hole 1972). Some of these studies have demonstrated a relationship between weather conditions and the occurrence of industrial and car accidents, excluding trivial reasons such as icy ground or storms (Rauschhofer et al 1981;Jendritzky et al 1978).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Prevalence of weather sensitivity in Germany and Canada

et al. 2004

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Several studies have shown that atmospheric conditions can affect well-being or disease, and that some individuals seem to be more sensitive to weather than others. Since epidemiological data on the prevalence of weather-related health effects are lacking, two representative weather sensitivity (WS) surveys were conducted independently in Germany and Canada. The objectives of this paper are: (1) to identify the prevalence of WS in Germany and Canada, (2) to describe weather-related symptoms and the corresponding weather conditions, and (3) to compare the findings in the two countries. In Germany 1,064 citizens (age >16 years) were interviewed in January 2001, and in Canada 1,506 persons (age >18 years) were interviewed in January 1994. The results showed that 19.2% of the German population thought that weather affected their health "to a strong degree," 35.3% that weather had "some influence on their health" (sum of both = 54.5% weather sensitive), whereas the remaining 45.5% did not consider that weather had an effect on their health status. In Canada 61% of the respondents considered themselves to be sensitive to the weather. The highest prevalence of WS (high + some influence) in Germans was found in the age group older than 60 years (68%), which was almost identical in the Canadian population (69%). The highest frequencies of weather-related symptoms were reported in Germany for stormy weather (30%) and when it became colder (29%). In Canada mainly cold weather (46%), dampness (21%) and rain (20%) were considered to affect health more than other weather types. The most frequent symptoms reported in Germany were headache/migraine (61%), lethargy (47%), sleep disturbances (46%), fatigue (42%), joint pain (40%), irritation (31%), depression (27%), vertigo (26%), concentration problems (26%) and scar pain (23%). Canadian weather-sensitive persons reported colds (29%), psychological effects (28%) and painful joints, muscles or arthritis (10%). In Germany 32% of the weather-sensitive subjects reported themselves to be unable to do their regular work because of weather-related symptoms at least once in the previous year, and 22% of them several times. Co-morbidity was significantly higher in weather-sensitive subjects both in Germany and Canada. These results clearly showed the important impact of WS on public health and the economy. These findings prompted us to start studies on the causal factors of weather-related health effects.

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Weather, beliefs about weather, and disease severity among patients with fibromyalgia

Cited by 39 publications

References 13 publications

Weather and the pain in fibromyalgia: are they related?

Weather and the pain in fibromyalgia: are they related?

The Clinical Concept of Fibromyalgia as a Changing Paradigm in the Past 20 Years

Prevalence of weather sensitivity in Germany and Canada

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