Aetiological Understanding of Fibromyalgia, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Classificatory Analogues: A Systematic Umbrella Review

Authors

  • Maria Kleinstäuber Orcid
    Department of Psychology, Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
  • Andreas Schröder Orcid
    The Research Clinic for Functional Disorders and Psychosomatics, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
  • Sarah Daehler Orcid
    Department of Psychology, Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
  • Karen Johanne Pallesen Orcid
    Danish Centre for Mindfulness, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
  • Charlotte U. Rask Orcid
    The Research Clinic for Functional Disorders and Psychosomatics, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark; Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychiatry, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
  • Mathias Sanyer Orcid
    Department of Psychology, Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
  • Omer Van den Bergh Orcid
    Department of Health Psychology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
  • Marie Weinreich Petersen Orcid
    The Research Clinic for Functional Disorders and Psychosomatics, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
  • Judith G. M. Rosmalen Orcid
    University Medical Centre Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

Abstract

Background: This umbrella review systematically assesses the variety and relative dominance of current aetiological views within the scientific literature for the three most investigated symptom-defined functional somatic syndromes (FSS) and their classificatory analogues within psychiatry and psychology. Method: An umbrella review of narrative and systematic reviews with and without meta-analyses based on a search of electronic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, PsychINFO) was conducted. Eligible reviews were published in English, focused on research of any kind of aetiological factors in adults diagnosed with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME), and somatic symptom disorder (SSD)/somatoform disorder (SFD). Results: We included 452 reviews (132 systematic reviews including meta-analyses, 133 systematic reviews, 197 narrative reviews), of which 132 (29%) focused on two or more of the investigated health conditions simultaneously. Across diagnoses, biological factors were addressed in 90% (k = 405), psychological in 33% (k = 150), social in 12% (k = 54), and healthcare factors in 5% (k = 23) of the reviews. The methodological quality of the included systematic reviews (k = 255) was low (low/critically low: 41% [k = 104]; moderate: 49% [k = 126]; high quality: 10% [k = 25]). The high-quality systematic reviews suggest that deficient conditioned pain modulation, genetic factors, changes in the immune, endocrinological, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and nervous system, and psychosocial factors such as sexual abuse and pain catastrophizing increase the risk for FSS. Conclusion: Only very few systematic reviews have used comprehensive, biopsychosocial disease models to guide the selection of aetiological factors in FSS research. Future research should strive for higher scientific standards and broaden its perspective on these health conditions.