The FIQR Explained: How the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire Is Scored
The Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire is the most widely used way to measure how much fibromyalgia is affecting someone's life. The current version, the FIQR (Revised FIQ), was published in 2009 by Robert Bennett and colleagues. If a rheumatologist or pain clinic has mentioned it, here's what it covers and how the score works.
What the FIQR asks
It has 21 questions, all about the past seven days, each answered from 0 to 10. They fall into three groups:
- Function (9 questions): how hard everyday things have been, such as brushing your hair, walking for 20 minutes, shopping, climbing stairs or changing a bed.
- Overall impact (2 questions): how much fibromyalgia stopped you reaching your goals for the week, and how overwhelmed you've felt by it.
- Symptoms (10 questions): pain, energy, stiffness, sleep quality, depression, memory, anxiety, tenderness to touch, balance and sensitivity to noise, lights, smells or cold.
How it's scored
Each group is weighted so the total comes out of 100:
| Group | How it's calculated | Range |
|---|---|---|
| Function | Sum of the 9 answers, divided by 3 | 0 to 30 |
| Overall impact | Sum of the 2 answers | 0 to 20 |
| Symptoms | Sum of the 10 answers, divided by 2 | 0 to 50 |
| Total | Add the three together | 0 to 100 |
Higher means fibromyalgia is having a bigger impact. Symptoms carry half the weight of the whole score, which reflects how much day to day life with fibromyalgia is shaped by pain, fatigue, sleep and fog.
What the number means
There's no single official set of bands, and the score isn't a diagnosis. A common rough guide treats scores under about 40 as a milder impact, the 40s and 50s as moderate, and 60 and above as severe. More useful than any band is how your own score changes over time. Research on the questionnaire suggests that a change of around 14 percent of your score is roughly the smallest change people notice as a real difference.
Why it's worth tracking
- It puts a number on the invisible. Fibromyalgia doesn't show on scans or blood tests. A score that's been 70 for six months is harder to brush aside than "it's been bad".
- It shows what's changing. Function, impact and symptoms can move separately, which helps when judging a new medication or a change in routine.
- It's familiar to clinicians. Rheumatologists and pain specialists know it, so it travels well between appointments.
Taking it about once a month is enough to see a trend. More often mostly picks up week to week noise.
A monthly fibromyalgia check-in, tracked for you
Fibro includes a short monthly check-in based on the FIQ's ten areas of daily life, scored out of 100, and keeps your scores alongside your daily logs, flares and barometric pressure.
This article is for general information and isn't a substitute for medical advice. Talk to a doctor about your own symptoms, tests and treatment.