• Alexander Karl-Georg Schuster, Markus Wettstein, Andreas Gerhardt, Wolfgang Eich, Christiane Bieber, and Jonas Tesarz.
• Department of Ophthalmology, Mainz University Medical Center, Mainz, Germany.
• Pain Med. 2018 Dec 1; 19 (12): 2528-2535.

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to examine visual function and eye symptoms in fibromyalgia patients, with a particular focus on dry eye syndrome and eye pain.MethodsA tertiary care center-based cross-sectional study was carried out in chronic musculoskeletal pain patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Chronic musculoskeletal pain patients without fibromyalgia were enrolled as a comparison group. Self-reported eye pain was investigated with the McGill pain questionnaire and the numeric rating scale. In addition, we assessed corrected visual acuity, vision-related quality of life, and self-reported dry eye syndrome.ResultsA total of 90 musculoskeletal pain patients were included, with 66 patients fulfilling American College of Rheumatology 1990 criteria for fibromyalgia. Sixty-seven percent (95% confidence interval [CI] = 56%-78%) of the fibromyalgia patients reported eye pain, and 62% (95% CI = 43%-81%) of those were without fibromyalgia diagnosis. Sixty-seven percent (95% CI = 56%-78%) of the fibromyalgia patients reported an experience of dry eye compared with 76% (95% CI = 57%-95%) in the nonfibromyalgia group. Vision-related quality of life was noticeably reduced in both groups.ConclusionsEye pain and dry eye are common in chronic pain patients, with comparable prevalence in musculoskeletal pain patients with and without fibromyalgia.

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