Back to Journals » Journal of Pain Research » Volume 5

Lifestyle-oriented non-pharmacological treatments for fibromyalgia: a clinical overview and applications with home-based technologies

Authors Friedberg F, Williams D, Collinge W

Received 20 June 2012

Accepted for publication 31 July 2012

Published 25 October 2012 Volume 2012:5 Pages 425—435

DOI https://doi.org/10.2147/JPR.S35199

Checked for plagiarism Yes

Review by Single anonymous peer review

Peer reviewer comments 3



Fred Friedberg,1 David A Williams,2 William Collinge3

1Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York; 2Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 3Collinge and Associates, Kittery, Maine, USA

Abstract: Fibromyalgia (FM) is a persistent and disabling widespread pain condition often accompanied by chronic fatigue, cognitive problems, sleep disturbance, depression, anxiety, and headache. To date, the most thoroughly studied non-pharmacological approaches to managing FM are those with a focus on changing patient activities and beliefs that affect the illness. These interventions are intended to facilitate enduring improvement in pain and functional status. Lifestyle-oriented treatments include patient education, aerobic or other physical exercise, and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). These interventions in FM can be delivered in medical or behavioral health care settings by trained professionals, through patient-oriented treatment manuals, or via remote-access technologies. Non-pharmacological treatments, in particular exercise and CBT, have yielded effect sizes and cost–benefit ratios comparable to medications. This paper describes lifestyle-oriented non-pharmacological treatments for FM and highlights selected literature reviews of these interventions. In addition, behavioral and practical issues are addressed that may affect these non-pharmacological treatments, including patient expectations, participant burden, and treatment availability. Recommendations are made to facilitate these interventions and potentially improve outcomes. In particular, the increasing availability of convenient home-based mobile technologies to deliver these non-pharmacological treatments is described.

Keywords: cognitive-behavior therapy, exercise, education, mobile technology

Creative Commons License © 2012 The Author(s). This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution - Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License. By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms.