Widespread chronic pain is a defining feature of fibromyalgia. But non-pain symptoms like fatigue, impaired sleep, stiffness, anxiety and depression also contribute to the burden of disease.
The Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ) is a good test of fibromyalgia severity because it considers multiple symptoms and the impact of those symptoms on daily life (1).
Your FIQ score provides an indication of whether your symptoms are mild, moderate or severe compared to others. But its best use is for tracking changes over time, in response to lifestyle or treatment modifications.
The FIQ is useful for tracking improvement and comparing treatments.
The FIQ is a better indicator of improvement than measures like tender point count. So it’s a convenient tool that can be used for tracking response to therapy over time – perhaps as part of a fibromyalgia journal or to compare the effectiveness of different medications.
You can calculate your score by hand (instructions here) or use our tool to calculate your FIQ score.
Click here to determine your FIQ score.
Additional information on the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire can be found at the Fibromyalgia Information Foundation.
1. Burckhardt, C.S., Clark, S.R., Bennett, R.M.: The fibromyalgia impact questionnaire (FIQ): development and validation. J Rheumatol. 18:728-733, 1991.