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. 2016:2016:7574589.
doi: 10.1155/2016/7574589. Epub 2016 Jan 13.

A New Rehabilitation Tool in Fibromyalgia: The Effects of Perceptive Rehabilitation on Pain and Function in a Clinical Randomized Controlled Trial

Teresa Paolucci  1 , Carlo Baldari  2 , Manuela Di Franco  3 , Dario Didona  3 , Victor Reis  4 , Mario Vetrano  5 , Marco Iosa  6 , Domenica Trifoglio  5 , Federico Zangrando  1 , Ennio Spadini  7 , Vincenzo Maria Saraceni  1 , Laura Guidetti  2
Affiliations

A New Rehabilitation Tool in Fibromyalgia: The Effects of Perceptive Rehabilitation on Pain and Function in a Clinical Randomized Controlled Trial

Teresa Paolucci et al. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2016.

Abstract

Introduction/Objective. Fibromyalgia might benefit from a specific tactile and proprioceptive rehabilitation approach. The aim of this study was to perform a randomized controlled trial to determine the efficacy of perceptual surfaces (PS) and physical exercises with regard to chronic pain and physical function in fibromyalgia compared with a control group. Methods. Data from 54 females (18-60 years old) with a diagnosis of fibromyalgia and scoring >5 on the visual analog scale were divided into 3 groups and analyzed: group treated with perceptual surfaces (PS-group), physical exercises group (PE-group), and control group (CG). The Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ), Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ), and Fibromyalgia Assessment Scale (FAS) were administered at baseline (T0), at the end of the treatment (T1) (after 10 rehabilitation sessions over a 5-week period), and at the 12-week follow-up (T2). Results. The PS-group experienced a statistically significant improvement versus the CG in FAS and HAQ scores. Good efficacy with respect to pain and function in the PE-group compared with the CG in terms of FAS, HAQ, and FIQ scores was observed. The adherence ratio was 86% for the PE-group and CG and 90% for the PS-group. Conclusions. According to the results, the PS are as promising as the physical exercises, since results were similar.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Perceptual surfaces and execution of a rehabilitation session.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Execution of a session in the physical exercises group.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Box and whiskers plots of FIQ (Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire), FAS (Fibromyalgia Assessment Status), and HAQ (Health Assessment Questionnaire) scores for the CG (control group), perceptual surfaces group (PS-group), and physical exercises group (PE-group) at the 3 assessments (T0, T1, and T2). The boxes show the lower quartile, median (middle line in box), and upper quartile values. The whiskers represent the most extreme values 1.5 times the interquartile range from the ends of the box, and the circles represent data with values beyond the ends of whiskers.
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