Exercise, not pain dedication, helps ease Fibromyalgia

Light endurance training can ease the symptoms of fibromyalgia, a chronic disorder characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain. This is according to new treatment guidelines cited by the Association of German Rheumatologists (BDRh). The guidelines were developed by physicians, scientists and patients’ representatives after evaluating all qualitatively useful therapy studies available on the disorder. They recommend that the training be combined with light strength exercises and meditative movement therapy such as tai chi or yoga, or with relaxation and psychotherapeutic techniques, medications should be used only intermittently in severe cases of fibromyalgia. Strong pain relievers containing opioids are not recommended at all because they are seldom beneficial in the long term and usually have unwanted side effects. The guidelines advise patients to engage in an activity such as taking a brisk walk, Nordic walking, or cycling two or three times a week for 30 minutes at a time. As BDRh executive committee member Ludwig Kalthoff noted, the combination of exercise and relaxation evidently did a lot of patients good. An estimated 4 per cent of the population in industrialized countries suffer from fibromyalgia, mostly women between the ages of 40 and 60. Typical symptoms are chronic pain in places such as the neck, abdomen or joints, sometimes accompanied by sleep problems, an irritable stomach or psychological problems such as anxiety.