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Updated: Jun 21, 2026

A Randomized, Sham-Controlled Trial of Cranial Electrical Stimulation for Fibromyalgia Pain and Physical Function, Using Brain Imaging Biomarkers
Published on: January 5, 2024
Pharmacotherapy of fibromyalgia
Philip J Mease1, Ernest H Choy
1Seattle Rheumatology Associates, Swedish Medical Center, Seattle, WA 98104, USA.pmease@nwlink.com
Abstract:
Advances have occurred in the pharmacotherapy of fibromyalgia (FM) and the methodology of clinical trial design in FM in parallel with improved understanding of the underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms. Several medications have been approved for the management of FM based on their clinically meaningful and durable effect on pain in monotherapy trials and their beneficial effect on patients'global impression of change, function, and other key symptom domains such as fatigue, sleep disturbance, and cognition. Adjunctive therapy with medicines targeted to specific symptom domains such as sleep as well as treatments aimed toward common comorbid conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome or disease states such as rheumatoid arthritis should be considered for the purpose of reducing the patient's overall symptom burden.
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