Fibromyalgia

A new study analyzed multiple areas of fibromyalgia including pain, brain characteristics, and medication efficacy, which resulted in some very telling conclusions.

Researchers investigated cerebral activation in patients with fibromyalgia (FMS) using functional near-infrared spectroscopy, and discovered altered central nervous processing in patients with FMS, as well as a distinction between FMS and major depression.

Are more patients with newly diagnosed fibromyalgia taking guideline-recommended medications or opioids? The answer may surprise you.

A Japanese study suggests that parental bonding style during childhood is associated with the prevalence of chronic pain in adults in the general population and that the association is more robust for paternal bonding than for maternal bonding.

Patients with fibromyalgia typically experience widespread chronic pain and a new study adds to the evidence that emotional impact is prominent as well.

Researchers from Kyoto University's Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS) may have found a way to control cell functions in order to alleviate intractable pain.

The number of opioid-related deaths nearly quadrupled from 1999 to 2011 in the US; and while that number continues to increase, one state has made positive strides with the implementation of two initiatives.

As the population ages and medicine continues to advance, people are living longer and healthier; but they are also taking more medications for more medical conditions. Those medications can cause drug-drug interactions that lead to adverse drug reactions (ADR). Studies have shown that the majority of medication errors happen at the stage of prescription.

Although a seemingly invisible condition, fibromyalgia (FM) may have an important connection with mental health symptoms.

A cocktail a day may keep the doctor away when it comes to patients with chronic widespread pain (CWP).

Patients with chronic back and leg pain may be able to forgo the use of prescription painkillers thanks to a new treatment that has been shown to provide long-lasting analgesia.

Merely being told that a treatment has analgesic effects may be all that a patient needs in order to experience pain relief, a new study suggested.

Chronic pain is just one of many conditions that may be treated with an innovative stem cell-based therapy, according to researchers at Duke University.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will require manufacturers to update labels in order to red flag possible serious side effects associated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

Not only have researchers uncovered a key factor that drives neuropathic pain, they have also identified a strategy to reverse it.

Researchers have found a genetic cause for the increased coronary artery disease risk experienced by some patients with migraine; however, this relationship may be limited to those who suffer from a specific kind of migraine.

While cognitive behavioral therapy has been used to treat patients with insomnia, evidence backing the treatment for those who also have other psychiatric and medical conditions has not been available until now.

Weighing the pros and cons of prescription opioid use for chronic pain is an ongoing battle, and new research may have just added to the list of disadvantages.

With 259 million painkiller prescriptions written in 2012 alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one of the most common side effects experienced by patients being treated for chronic pain is opioid-induced constipation (OIC).

Pain is widely considered the "fifth vital sign" – and for good reason. By some estimates, pain accounts for as much as 4 out of every 5 doctor visits in the US. Thus, learning more about the correlates and determinants of pain is particularly important.

For the first time, researchers have evidence identifying the key cells behind the pain imbalance between genders.

Physical therapy and exercise regimens have been found by many studies to be beneficial to patients with fibromyalgia. But what types of exercise are appropriate for patients who experience persistent, widespread pain, and who may be suffering sleep disturbance, joint stiffness, and many other interrelated symptoms?

A rheumatologist picks 5 studies he found particularly noteworthy at EULAR and gets right to the point about their potential clinical implications.

It should be common knowledge that prescription opioids have addictive properties, yet alarming survey results reveal that many healthcare providers do not understand the extent to which this is the case.

Difficult diagnosis, overlap with other conditions, lack of objective signs, the absence of proven treatment. . . these reviews of chronic fatigue syndrome filter and summarize the most rigorous evidence available.

With many Americans blaming overprescribing for the painkiller abuse epidemic, novel treatments excluding medication – such as the oxygen chamber – are few and far between. However, a new analysis may have uncovered one for patients with chronic lower back pain.

Pain management research goes far beyond identifying drug development and new uses for existing medication. One particularly interesting but neglected area of study involves prism adaptation, a non-invasive, non-medication procedure that sounds like something straight out of a science fiction novel.

Multiple studies have demonstrated the efficacy of a new class of drugs for preventing the intense pain and crippling effects of migraines.

A number of studies have shown that gabapentin, developed to treat epilepsy, is effective in treating postherpetic neuralgia and painful diabetic neuropathy. Now, a study has revealed that gabapentin may hold promise for treating fibromyalgia as well.

Spicy food may hold more power than just adding a little zest to a meal. Researchers have uncovered a key interaction that is responsible for the sensations of pain and heat.