[Self-reported chronic muscle pain among women in Oslo].

The prevalence and epidemiological features of chronic muscle pain were investigated in a cross-sectional postal survey of 2,664 females aged 25-55 years, out of a random sample of 4,000 females in Oslo, Norway. The three-month prevalence of chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain was 22%, while 25% reported chronic localised pain. Chronic widespread pain was significantly associated with a number of sociodemographic factors, whereas no such associations were found for localised pain. Other health complaints, insomnia and low satisfaction with life, were more common among women with widespread pain than among women with localised pain.