Fibromyalgia is a chronic musculoskeletal condition in which the body experiences normally nonpainful stimuli as pain. Muscle aches, tenderness and fatigue are common symptoms.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved any treatments specifically for fibromyalgia. Symptoms are treated with medications such as analgesics (painkillers) and antidepressants.

University of Kentucky and corporate researchers studied the effect of pregabalin (Lyrica) on 1,051 patients with fibromyalgia. Pregabalin is an anticonvulsant approved to treat painful diabetic neuropathy, post-shingles pain and some forms of epilepsy.

The patients, 93 percent of whom were women, were assigned to receive either 300, 450 or 600 milligrams of pregabalin daily for six weeks. Nearly two-thirds of them (63 percent) reported a reduction in pain of more than 50 percent. Of those 663 patients, 566 were randomly assigned in a 26-week double-blind study to receive either a placebo (sugar pill) or their optimal dosage of pregabalin from the six-week trial.

At the end of the half-year study, 61 percent of the placebo patients but only 32 percent of the pregabalin patients had lost response to their pills. The researchers concluded that the medication could offer long-term relief to fibromyalgia patients. Side effects included dizziness, sleepiness, sinusitis, joint pain and anxiety.

The study was presented last month at the American College of Rheumatology's annual scientific meeting.

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Publish Date: December 04, 2006