Support, Health, and Fibromyalgia

Next to osteoarthritis, FMS is the most common arthritis-related disease. Symptoms include musculoskeletal pain, fatigue, headaches, irritable bowel syndrome, morning stiffness, and sleep disturbances. Fluctuating severity, pain, and frustration with the difficulty of diagnosis and treatment lead patients to continually seek help from health care professionals. There is no known cause or cure for this disease.

This study tests the effects of social support and education on the health and well-being of people with fibromyalgia (FMS). We recruited 600 adults with a confirmed diagnosis of FMS from a large health maintenance organization. To be eligible, people had to meet the American College of Rheumatology guidelines for FMS. After we confirmed the diagnosis, we assigned those who agreed to participate to one of three groups. The first group (social support) met with others who suffer from FMS for 2 hours every week for 10 weeks, and then monthly for an additional 10 months. The second group (social support and education) also had 10 2-hour weekly meetings followed by 10 monthly meetings with others who suffer from FMS, and its members learned about the disease and self-management techniques. The third group (control) participated only in the five assessment periods. We assessed people in all three groups before we assigned them to a group, after the intervention, and at yearly follow-ups. The study duration was 4 years.

Inclusion criteria

• A diagnosis of fibromyalgia documented in medical records and confirmed using The American College of Rheumatology criteria for classification of FMS: (1) A history of widespread pain (pain on both sides of the body, above and below the waist, and present for at least 3 months). (2) Pain in 11 or more of 18 tender-point sites.
• Patient willing to attend 10 weekly meetings and 10 monthly meetings.

Exclusion criteria

• Patients who do not meet ACR criteria for FMS described above.
• Patients who cannot attend meetings once a week for 10 weeks and once a month for 10 months were excluded.