Foot Dysfunction and Its Associations with Kinesiophobia and Concern About Falling in Adults with Fibromyalgia Syndrome: A Cross-Sectional Study
- 1Departamento de Ciencias del Comportamiento y Salud, Área Enfermería, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Miguel Hernández, 03550 Alicante, Spain
- 2University Podiatry Clinic, Universidad Miguel Hernández, 03550 Alicante, Spain
- 3Institute of Health and Biomedical Research of Alicante (ISABIAL), 03010 Alicante, Spain
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Foot problems are common in fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and may be related to pain, kinesiophobia, and concern about falling. This study examined associations between foot function, kinesiophobia, and concern about falling in adults with FMS and identified factors independently associated with worse foot function. Methods: Adults with clinically diagnosed FMS were assessed between December 2024 and April 2025 in this cross-sectional study. Foot function was evaluated using the Foot Function Index (FFI), kinesiophobia with the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia-11 (TSK-11), and concern about falling with the Falls Efficacy Scale–International (FES-I). Multivariable linear regression identified factors independently associated with total FFI score. Results: Among 444 participants, 95.3% were women. The mean FFI score was 52.28 ± 23.24/100, with pain showing the greatest impairment. The mean TSK-11 and FES-I scores were 29.21 ± 7.91 and 39.73 ± 12.41, respectively. FFI scores were associated with both TSK-11 and FES-I scores in bivariate analyses (p < 0.001). In multivariable analysis (adjusted R2 = 0.366), older age was associated with lower FFI scores, whereas higher BMI, smoking history, rheumatoid arthritis, and higher FES-I scores were independently associated with worse foot function. Conclusions: Foot dysfunction in FMS was associated with kinesiophobia and concern about falling, but only concern about falling remained independently associated after adjustment. Higher BMI, smoking history, and rheumatoid arthritis were also associated with worse foot function. Assessment of concern about falling may provide complementary information when evaluating foot-related functional impairment in individuals with FMS.
Related
- Clinical, functional, and quality-of-life characteristics of women with comorbid fibromyalgia and irritable bowel syndrome and their associations with FIQR scores
- Compositional associations of 24-hour movement behaviors with metabolic syndrome in Korean older adults: a nationwide cross-sectional study using KNHANES 2022-2024
- Sexual dysfunction after female genital mutilation/cutting: A retrospective cross-sectional study of associations with organ-specific genital anatomy, trauma history, and psychiatric comorbidity
- Female sexual dysfunction in premenopausal women with diabetes mellitus in northern Nigeria: A cross-sectional study from two tertiary hospitals examining associations with glycaemic control and reproductive hormones
- Beyond BMI: Associations of Body-Shape Indices with CBC-Derived Systemic Inflammatory Indices in Adults with Metabolic Syndrome: A Cross-Sectional Study
BibTeX
@article{moyacuenca2026foot,
title = {{Foot Dysfunction and Its Associations with Kinesiophobia and Concern About Falling in Adults with Fibromyalgia Syndrome: A Cross-Sectional Study}},
author = {Coral Moya-Cuenca and Ana López-González and Hayla Pérez-Matilla and Alba Gracia-Sánchez and África Lozano-Espinosa and Silvia García-Lázaro and Esther Chicharro-Luna and Sara Zúnica-García},
journal = {Journal of clinical medicine},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/jcm15197718},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13666124},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Foot Dysfunction and Its Associations with Kinesiophobia and Concern About Falling in Adults with Fibromyalgia Syndrome: A Cross-Sectional Study
AU - Coral Moya-Cuenca
AU - Ana López-González
AU - Hayla Pérez-Matilla
AU - Alba Gracia-Sánchez
AU - África Lozano-Espinosa
AU - Silvia García-Lázaro
AU - Esther Chicharro-Luna
AU - Sara Zúnica-García
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Journal of clinical medicine
DO - 10.3390/jcm15197718
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13666124
AB - Background/Objectives: Foot problems are common in fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and may be related to pain, kinesiophobia, and concern about falling. This study examined associations between foot function, kinesiophobia, and concern about falling in adults with FMS and identified factors independently associated with worse foot function. Methods: Adults with clinically diagnosed FMS were assessed between December 2024 and April 2025 in this cross-sectional study. Foot function was evaluated using the Foot Function Index (FFI), kinesiophobia with the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia-11 (TSK-11), and concern about falling with the Falls Efficacy Scale–International (FES-I). Multivariable linear regression identified factors independently associated with total FFI score. Results: Among 444 participants, 95.3% were women. The mean FFI score was 52.28 ± 23.24/100, with pain showing the greatest impairment. The mean TSK-11 and FES-I scores were 29.21 ± 7.91 and 39.73 ± 12.41, respectively. FFI scores were associated with both TSK-11 and FES-I scores in bivariate analyses (p < 0.001). In multivariable analysis (adjusted R2 = 0.366), older age was associated with lower FFI scores, whereas higher BMI, smoking history, rheumatoid arthritis, and higher FES-I scores were independently associated with worse foot function. Conclusions: Foot dysfunction in FMS was associated with kinesiophobia and concern about falling, but only concern about falling remained independently associated after adjustment. Higher BMI, smoking history, and rheumatoid arthritis were also associated with worse foot function. Assessment of concern about falling may provide complementary information when evaluating foot-related functional impairment in individuals with FMS.
SN - 2077-0383
ER -