Fibromyalgia Husbands Suffer, Too

Spouses of Patients Feel More Stress, Depression
By Jennifer Warner WebMD Medical News

March 21, 2002 -- Husbands of women with fibromyalgia are more likely to be
in poor health or depressed than other men, according to a new study. But
researchers say the problem isn't nearly as bad as they had anticipated.

Fibromyalgia is a painful long-term disorder that causes aches and pain in
muscles, tendons, and joints all over the body. Symptoms may also include
sleep disturbances, depression, and headaches. Women tend to develop the
disorder much more often than men.

Previous research has found that spouses of chronically ill patients suffer
more physical health problems than the spouses of healthy people. But those
studies have concentrated on spouses who are also caregivers and provide
assistance with daily life for those unable to care for themselves, such as
Alzheimer's patients. Researchers say little is known about how a healthy
person is affected by caring for a spouse with other, less debilitating
chronic disorders.

The study, published in the March issue of Health Psychology, compared the
health and mental status of 135 men whose wives or long-term partners
suffered from fibromyalgia with 153 men with healthy wives. Researchers say
they found that men whose wives have fibromyalgia are more average than
expected, in several ways.

Although the fibromyalgia spouses were in poorer health than the spouses of
healthy women, their scores on health assessment tests were within the normal
range for their age. Each man's health scores also did not seem to be related
to the severity of his wife's illness.

Fibromyalgia husbands do experience more psychological problems such as
depression and loneliness, and reported more stress and fatigue than did
spouses of well women. But scores for these problems were also within or very
close to the normal range for the men. In addition, both groups of husbands
reported similar levels of satisfaction with life.

Researchers say the findings were less dramatic than they had anticipated,
but that the study may be skewed because the men may have already
successfully adapted to their wives' illness. Participants reported that
fibromyalgia symptoms had begun an average of nine years before the study
began.

The study authors say more research is needed to determine exactly what factors or interventions allow a spouse to successfully adapt to their mate's chronic illness.

"Understanding the effects of a chronic health condition on the patient's
spouse might lead to the development of effective interventions for these
individuals," write the authors. "A spouse who deals well with the burden of
chronic illness can help the patient adjust better, therefore improving the
patient's quality of life. Similarly, the spouse's quality of life may be
improved."