本邦線維筋痛症の臨床疫学像（全国疫学調査の結果から)

抄録

    Fibromyalgia (FN) is a common rheumatic disorder in American and European populations. In Japan, however, FM is not a well-accepted concept because it is a poorly recognized disorder. Epidemiological findings of Japanese patients with FM are still unclear due to a lack of nationwide epidemiological surveys. We conducted the first nationwide epidemiological survey for FM in Japan. The estimated annual number of patients diagnosed and treated in hospitals was 2,670 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1,850-3,490), and the number of patients treated by Japanese rheumatologists was 3,930 (95% CI 3, 220-4,640). Only 31.7% (734/2,313) of Japanese rheumatologists could diagnose the patient as having FM. The age distribution was from 11 to 84, with an average age of 52.3±16.2 years of age and 3.6% of them were in their childhood. The estimated onset ages were 44.0±16.1 (9-76) years, and the time elapsed from onset to the survey date was 4.7±6.7 (0-50) years. The male to female ratio was 1: 4.8, and primary FM to secondary FM ratio was 3.1: 1. Among secondary FM cases, underling disorders were as follows: rheumatoid arthritis (35.5%), other rheumatic disorders (44.1%) and others (20.4%). The Japanese patients were treated by rheumatology clinics and physicians. Most of the patients were outpatients, and only 12.5% were hospitalized. For one year, the rate of recovery from FM was only 1.5%, and a half of the patients had poor activity in daily life. These findings show that only a small portion of FM patients would be received medical management in Japan.