Patients With Fibromyalgia Respond To Chiropractic
Patients With Fibromyalgia Respond To Chiropractic
The May 2000 issue of the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapuetics reports that
60% of a group of patients with Fibromyalgia responded very well to chiropractic care.
The patients in the study had Fibromyalgia for more than 3 months and were adult members
of a regional Fibromyalgia association. Each participant was adjusted during 30 visits with selfadministered
assessments taken at the beginning of the study, after 15 visits, 30 visits and 30
days after completion of the study. Researchers were looking for improvement in three areas;
pain intensity, fatigue level and sleep quality.
15 women completed the trial. 9 of them (60%) were classified as "respondents".
Respondents were those participants who experienced at least a 50% improvement in pain
intensity over the course of the study.
After 30 visits, the respondents showed an average lessening of 77.2% in pain intensity and
an improvement of 63.5% in sleep quality and 74.8% in fatigue level. The improvement in all
three areas continued after 1 month without chiropractic care.
A similar study in 1986 and reported in the American Journal of Medicine (1986; 81:7--14)
found that 45.9% of people who had Fibromyalgia and went to a chiropractor experienced
moderate to great improvement. In the same study, anti-depressant medication benefited only
36.3% of those studied and exercise was limited to a 31.8% rate of improvement.
By way of commentary, there is absolutely no doubt that removing interference to your central
nervous system by correcting vertebral subluxations helps restore the body's in-born, built-in
ability to heal itself. Whether you suffer from a serious condition like Fibromyalgia or not, you
will benefit from chiropractic care. Your body will be healthier and function better as a result.