Lung Function, Respiratory Muscle Strength, and Thoracoabdominal Mobility in Women With Fibromyalgia Syndrome

Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is associated with a variety of symptoms, such as fatigue and dyspnea, which may be related to changes in the respiratory system. The objective of this work was to evaluate pulmonary function, respiratory muscle strength, and thoracoabdominal mobility in women with FMS and its association with clinical manifestations.

The study included 23 women with FMS and 23 healthy women (control group). Pulmonary function, respiratory muscle strength, and thoracoabdominal mobility were assessed in all participants. Clinical manifestations such as number of active tender points, pain, fatigue, well-being, and general pressure pain threshold and pressure pain threshold in regions involved in respiratory function were also assessed. For data analysis, the Mann-Whitney test and Spearman correlation coefficient were used.

The FMS group showed lower values of maximum voluntary ventilation (P = .030), maximal inspiratory pressure (P = .003), and cirtometry at the axillary and xiphoid levels (P < .001 and P < .001, respectively) as well as higher cirtometry at the abdominal level (P = .005) compared with the control group. However, there was no significant difference between groups for maximum expiratory pressure. In predicted percentage, maximal inspiratory pressure showed significant positive correlation with axillary cirtometry (r = 0.41, P = .049) and negative correlation with the number of active tender points (r = -0.44, P = .031) and fatigue (r = -0.41, P = .049).

Subjects with FMS had lower respiratory muscle endurance, inspiratory muscle strength, and thoracic mobility than healthy subjects. In addition, inspiratory muscle strength was associated with the number of active tender points, fatigue, and axillary mobility.