Fibromyalgia syndrome in the general population of France: a prevalence study.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome in the French general population.

Methods: A validated French version of the London Fibromyalgia Epidemiology Study Screening Questionnaire (LFESSQ) was administered via telephone to a representative community sample of 1014 subjects aged over 15 years, selected by the quota method. A positive screen was defined as: (1) meeting the 4-pain criteria alone (LFESSQ-4), or (2) meeting both the 4-pain and 2-fatigue criteria (LFESSQ-6).