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Some good news...and some bad news...about fibromyalgia



When preparing for this post, I found a couple of things in the news recently that I thought would be of interest to readers, especially those with fibromyalgia.  I don't know which news you'd rather have first...but I think I'm gonna tell you the bad news.... so we can end on a positive note!




The bad news is that a recent study has revealed a connection between exposure to hepatitis B virus and fibromyalgia.  It appears that a a protein in some strains of the hepatitis B virus is to blame.  Maybe this is actually good news in the sense that, the more we know about fibromyalgia, the better we can understand how to prevent, diagnose, and treat it.



The good news that I have for you--has nothing to do with the bad news.  A meta-analysis of various medications and other modes of treatment for fibromyalgia were studied.  Winifred Hauser, an expert in the field, made the following statement:

"There is no magic drug against fibromyalgia, and in my opinion, there will never be. Psychotherapists don't work miracles, but psychotherapy can help, in in a few cases, turn people with fibromyalgia into non-patients. Drugs may help, but patients don't like them.

Aerobic exercise the the most effective weapon we have; healthy people profit from continuous physical exercise, and so do patients with fibromyalgia."


Dr. Hauser advocates treating each fibromyalgia patient on an individual basis. He says that tolerability, safety, cost, and patient's willingness to continue therapy are important factors. He mentions that it is important to take a graduated approach to treatment; when patients were asked to list the most beneficial treatments for fibromyalgia, pharmacologic agents are not in the top 10!


Sources: NIH, MedScape, Wikimedia

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