Yes, itchy skin (pruritus) is a recognized symptom of fibromyalgia, often linked to the condition's central nervous system sensitization, causing overactive nerve signals that create itch, tingling, or crawling sensations, sometimes with rashes, dryness, or even burning, even without visible skin issues. About 60% of fibromyalgia patients experience chronic itch, which can significantly impact sleep and quality of life, but often isn't directly tied to pain intensity.
Stinging sensation: You might feel a stinging or burning sensation, much like a harsh sunburn. Crawling feeling: It might feel as if tiny insects are moving across your skin, creating discomfort. Sharp itchiness: Sometimes, the itch can be sharp and piercing, and you might also experience numbness in the area.
In one study, nearly a third of people with fibromyalgia also experienced hyperhidrosis. Lichen simplex chronicus: this condition features itchy rashes with thickened, leather-like skin, resulting from a continuous itch-scratch cycle. It is considered one of the more common skin issues for people with fibromyalgia.
Cutaneous ACTDs, including lupus erythematosus (LE), dermatomyositis, Sjögren syndrome (SS), morphea, and systemic sclerosis (SSc), are no exceptions to having pruritus as one of the prominent symptoms.
Each person's symptoms may vary. But chronic pain is the most common symptom. The pain most often affects the muscles and the points where muscles attach to bones. These are the ligaments and tendons.
To meet the fibromyalgia criteria, patients must have widespread pain in at least 11 of the 18 specified tender points in all four quadrants of the body for a minimum of three months. The 18 sites used for the fibromyalgia diagnosis cluster around the neck, shoulder, chest, hip, knee, and elbow regions.
Several rheumatic diseases can mimic fibromyalgia. These include sero-negative rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, Lyme disease, polymyalgia rheumatica and lupus. They have symptoms of widespread pain along with joint involvement.
Itching on the whole body might be a symptom of an underlying illness, such as liver disease, kidney disease, anemia, diabetes, thyroid problems and certain cancers. Nerve disorders. Examples include multiple sclerosis, pinched nerves and shingles (herpes zoster).
MS itching feels like a deep, intense, "under-the-skin" itch that doesn't go away with scratching, often described as burning, tingling, pins-and-needles, or crawling, because it's a nerve signal issue (dysesthesia) from central nervous system damage, not a skin problem. It can appear suddenly, vary in intensity, and feel like bugs crawling or electric shocks, often affecting limbs, face, or trunk, and standard creams don't help.
Iron deficiency is very common in the U.S. — especially among women — and can be diagnosed with a simple blood test. Sometimes an iron deficiency can cause severely itchy and red skin. The good news is that increasing your iron intake will often make the itchiness go away.
Unusual Symptoms of Fibromyalgia
Antihistamines, especially those targeting both H1 and H2 receptors, may also help reduce mast cell driven symptoms. These are already widely available and have shown anecdotal benefits for people with fibromyalgia like presentations that include flushing, nausea, or cognitive fog.
Fibromyalgia Tender Points
Atopic dermatitis behind the knees
Atopic dermatitis can cause a very itchy rash. Atopic dermatitis most often occurs where the skin flexes — inside the elbows, behind the knees and in front of the neck. Atopic dermatitis (eczema) is a condition that causes dry, itchy and inflamed skin.
Duloxetine (Cymbalta) and milnacipran (Savella) may help ease fibromyalgia pain and fatigue. Your doctor may prescribe amitriptyline or the muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine to help with pain or sleep. Anti-seizure medicines. Epilepsy medicines often help ease some types of pain.
Fibromyalgia: Known for its wide range of effects on the body, fibromyalgia is particularly associated with various sensory symptoms. Among these is the sensation of crawling on the skin, which can be quite distressing for those affected. This symptom is just one of many that fibromyalgia sufferers may experience.
Central nervous system lesions affecting sensory pathways, including strokes, multiple sclerosis, and cavernous hemangiomas can cause central itch. Neuropathic itch is a potent trigger of reflex and volitional scratching although this provides only fleeting relief.
Symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS)
Itching can occur in fibromyalgia and may be linked to how the nervous system processes pain and touch. Overactive nerves can make the skin more sensitive, even when there is no rash or visible irritation. Common triggers include medications, temperature changes, stress, or hormonal shifts.
This is known as hell's itch, or the devil's itch, which can feel like a deep, painful, throbbing itch that lasts for a few days after sunburn. Hell's itch is fairly rare, and it tends to affect people with fairer skin, and those who have been exposed to the sun at higher altitudes—such as being in the mountains.
See a GP if itchy skin:
does not get better with self care or keeps coming back. is caused by a new rash, lump or swelling that you're worried about. is all over your body. is severe.
With lymphoma, you can itch anywhere on your body, but it's common on the lower legs, hands, feet, torso (between waist and shoulders), or near affected lymph nodes, often worsening at night and without a typical rash, feeling deep and unrelieved by scratching. This itchiness is caused by immune chemicals (cytokines) irritating nerve endings, and can be a symptom of both Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
The most widely used criteria for diagnosis are:
Myalgic encephalomyelitis/Chronic fatigue syndrome [for succinctness, CFS] and fibromyalgia [FM] are medically unexplained illnesses, predominantly in women, characterized by disabling fatigue and by widespread pain with tenderness, respectively.
In about half of people with this type of MS, symptoms gradually get worse over time. Treatment can slow progression and reduce other symptoms. Fibromyalgia doesn't tend to get worse over time, but it doesn't usually go away.