A Nonpharmalogical Approach in Treating Pain Associated with Fibromyalgia.
If you find yourself confused about fibromyalgia, you are not alone. Patients, physicians, and researchers alike have been perplexed by this complex condition. Even as few as ten years ago, there was little discussion about this syndrome within the medical community. With the wide array of symptoms associated with it, fibromyalgia was often confused with the symptoms which accompanied it, and consequently was misdiagnosed or thought to be "in the mind." Today science has recognized fibromyalgia as a rheumatic autoimmune disorder affecting between 3 and 6 million Americans each year. What was once thought of a psychosomatic complaint has turned out to be a complex disorder which is only now beginning to be understood.
Several symptoms must be present in order to confirm a fibromyalgia diagnosis. The first is widespread muscle and skeletal pain. Widespread is defined as pain occurring on the right and left sides of the body, above and below the waist, and along the spine. Localized pain also must occur in a majority of identified "tender points" all over the surface of the body. Other general, common symptoms include aching, disturbed sleep patterns, fatigue, morning stiffness, depression, recurrent headaches, tender lymph nodes, bowel or bladder disturbances, sensitivity to heat or cold, anxiety, gastrointestinal disturbances, dizziness, occasional racing heart beats, decreased coordination, and environmental allergies. The presence of certain diseases is also common with a fibromyalgia diagnosis. Three of the most common diseases are irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Raynaud's disease, and temporal mandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ).
Several studies have used nonpharmalogical methods in an attempt to treat fibromyalgia with varying results. A recent study used wool clothing and bedding to determine whether it is effective in the management of fibromyalgia. The study included a total of 50 patients with fibromyalgia who were then randomly assigned to one of two groups with 25 patients in each group. The patients included in the treatment group wore woolen underwear that covered their body from the shoulders to the thighs and used woolen bedding for a period of six weeks. The patients were assessed at the beginning of the trial and again at the end of the six weeks. The results revealed that patients in the treatment group reported significant improvements in their symptoms of fibromyalgia. They reported a reduction in pain levels, tender point counts and all scores on the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire. It appears that the use of wool can reduce the symptoms of fibromyalgia and could be recommended as a treatment option for alleviating the pain associated with this condition.1
1 Kiyak EK. A new nonpharmacological method in fibromyalgia: the use of wool. J Altern Complement Med. Apr2009;15(4):399-405.