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Abstract

BACKGROUND


Despite the increasing prevalence of fibromyalgia, there has been little or no attention to its diagnosis and treatment in the undergraduate medical curriculum. This study intended to assess the knowledge and awareness of fibromyalgia among undergraduate medical students in Nigeria.


METHODS


This was a cross-sectional, descriptive survey conducted from September to December 2021. A total of 175 clinical students participated in the survey. The questionnaire comprised sociodemographic data and questions related to fibromyalgia. A scoring system was developed to stratify knowledge of fibromyalgia into very low, low, average, high, and very high. The level of significance was set at P < 0.05.


RESULTS


Responses were obtained from 175 clinical students with a mean age of 25.14 ± 3.21 years. Most of the participants (38.3 %) had low fibromyalgia knowledge levels. The main sources of information on fibromyalgia were clinical postings (47.1 %) and the internet (37.1 %). Widespread pain (84.6 %), fatigue (74.9 %), sleep disturbance (73.7 %), and joint pain (69.1 %) were the most selected symptoms. About a third (32.6 %) did not know any diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia. Physical exercise (80.0 %), NSAIDs (77.1%), and prednisolone (66.9 %) were the most selected treatment options. Age (p = 0.045), gender (p = 0.019), class level (p = 0.002), and current clinical posting (p = 0.032) were significantly associated with fibromyalgia knowledge levels.


CONCLUSIONS


This study revealed inadequate fibromyalgia knowledge among Nigerian medical students. This highlights the need to improve the undergraduate medical curriculum to bridge the knowledge gap.

Keywords

Awareness, Medical Students, Fibromyalgia, Knowledge, Medical Curriculum

Article Details

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite
Airenakho Emorinken, Oluwaseun Remi Agbadaola, Mercy Ofunami Dic-Ijiewere, Orebowale Olugbemide, Asuwemhe Johnson Ugheoke, Patrick Adunbiola, & Onyekachukwu Rhoda Ekwem. (2022). Assessment of Undergraduate Medical Students Knowledge and Awareness of Fibromyalgia. Journal of Evolution of Medical and Dental Sciences, 11(5), 551–556. https://doi.org/10.14260/jemds/2022/111
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