In musculoskeletal assessment, the patient’s medical history plays a key role in helping the clinician pinpoint and isolate the specific underlying problem. Among the data reported, reference is often made to the topographic distribution of pain reported by patients (pain mapping) in determining the structures responsible for their symptoms. However, different musculoskeletal structures have been shown to reproduce similar pain patterns, making pain mapping only one of the elements to consider when identifying the patient's disorder. The aim of this article is to present the scientific papers published on the subject and discuss their clinical implications.