Women Veterans, a Population at Risk for Fibromyalgia: The Associations Between Fibromyalgia, Symptoms, and Quality of Life.

This study examines the prevalence and impact of FM in women veterans and to explore the association between other comorbidities to improve risk differentiation for treatment and improve outcomes. METHODS: This study is designed as a nested, cross-sectional study within a larger project funded by the U.S. Army at the University of South Florida, College of Nursing entitled "Nursing Health Initiative for Empowering Women Veterans." A sample of 76 participants completed a battery of study instruments related to physical and psychological stressors. FINDINGS: Over half of the sample had a positive FM screening score (56.68%) although only 14.42% were deployed to the Middle East. More than 70% of participants reported harassment in life in the military and 32.9% reported sexual assault while in the military. Results of the 1-way analysis of variances find that there was a significant association of FM with the psychological symptoms of stress, depression, and PTSD. There was a significant association of FM with quality of life and sleep difficulty. DISCUSSION, IMPACT, AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The results from this pilot study suggest there is a significant relationship between FM and the psychological symptoms of depression and PTSD. Nearly two-thirds of these women screened positive for depressive symptoms and just over one-quarter of participants had symptoms indicative of PTSD. Only a small proportion of women veterans in this study were deployed (14.42%) a...
Source: Military Medicine - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: Mil Med Source Type: research