Abstract

This review examines recent articles on the biological correlates of fibromyalgia. Topics discussed include evidence for abnormalities found in biochemical, immunological and muscle studies and disturbance of the neuroendocrine system and sleep. In the future, the role of genetic influences on the development and perpetuation of fibromyalgia will be assessed, and the first of a few of these studies are reviewed. In general, although many different biological correlates have been described in a variety of different systems (neural processing, neurohormonal and autoimmune, etc.) it remains unclear whether these abnormalities are found universally or just in selected groups and whether they represent part of the pathogenesis or are epiphenomena.