Instruments for measuring fatigue in people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases: a systematic review of measurement properties
Authors' conclusion
This SR comprehensively supports the use of several well-validated instruments to assess fatigue, particularly FACIT-Fatigue, SF-36 Vitality, BRAF-MDQ, BRAF-NRS and FSS, in both clinical and research settings.
Study context
- Population
- Children, adolescents/young adults and adults with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs); Medline, Embase, CINAHL and Cochrane Library60 studies
- Outcome
- Measurement properties of instruments used to assess fatigue in people with RMDs
Methodological detailsJoanna Briggs Institute and COSMIN guidelines, OMERACT criteria, independent dual-reviewer risk of bias assessment, data extraction and synthesis
- Joanna Briggs Institute and COSMIN guidelines
- OMERACT criteria
- Independent dual-reviewer risk of bias assessment, data extraction and synthesis
Pooled result
As reported in the abstract
Measurement properties of fatigue instruments
- Studies assessing construct validity (overall low risk of bias)
- 54/60, 90%
- Studies assessing intermethod reliability (overall low risk of bias)
- 45/60, 75%
- Studies assessing test-retest reliability (overall low risk of bias)
- 13/60, 21.7%
- Studies assessing responsiveness (overall low risk of bias)
- 14/60, 23.3%
- Instruments rated valid, reliable and low risk of bias, fulfilling OMERACT endorsement criteria (FACIT-Fatigue, SF-36 Vitality, Bristol Rheumatoid Arthritis Fatigue Multi-Dimensional Questionnaire (BRAF-MDQ), BRAF Numerical Rating Scales (BRAF-NRS), Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS))
- 5
Original publication
Instruments for measuring fatigue in people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases: a systematic review of measurement properties. RMD Open. Published 23 October 2025. doi:10.
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