Quality of Life in Patients with Fibromyalgia Pages 1-17

Atef Emiel Tawadros1, Dioma Udeoji1, Magy Awad1, Alexander de Castro-Abeger1, Trang Nguyen1,2, Jean-Charles Bensoussan1 and Waguih William IsHak1,3

1Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center; 2University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), and 3Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12970/2310-8231.2013.01.01.1

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Abstract: Objectives: The aim of this review is to provide practicing clinicians with detailed information on the quality of life (QoL) of patients with fibromyalgia, and the medical and non-medical management effects on quality of life in fibromyalgia.

Methods: A systematic English language search of the medical literature from January 1980 to January 2013 using PubMed was conducted using the search terms “fibromyalgia” AND “quality of life.” The literature search revealed 1,086 publications; 259 were clinical trials on human patients, 230 were reviews and 20 were case reports. Three authors reached a consensus on selecting the studies based on specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. A total of 95 research studies were included in this review.

Results: Overall quality of life is severely impaired in patients with fibromyalgia. Comorbidities have a further negative impact on QoL. Substantial pain reductions resulting in improvement of QoL were observed with medications and non-medication interventions such as exercise, acupuncture, cognitive behavioral therapy, neurofeedback and multidisciplinary approach.

Conclusion: Fibromyalgia and its comorbidities including pain have a considerable negative impact on the quality of life of fibromyalgia patients. Substantial or moderate pain reduction seems to improve quality of life. A multidisciplinary approach appears to be most beneficial in management of this multifaceted illness, but more studies are needed to develop specific interventions necessary to alleviate pain and sufferings in these patients.

Keywords: Fibromyalgia, quality of life, pain, pain management, multidisciplinary approach. Read more