Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
6221016 | The Journal of Pediatrics | 2015 | 7 Pages |
ObjectiveTo assess the short-term and 1-year outcomes of children with fibromyalgia treated with intensive physical and occupational therapy (PT/OT) and psychotherapy.Study designChildren with fibromyalgia seen at a tertiary care hospital were treated with 5-6Â hours of intensive PT/OT daily and at least 4Â hours of psychosocial services weekly. All medications used for fibromyalgia were discontinued. Children underwent standardized testing, including a visual analog scale for pain; the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Performance, Second Edition; the Bruce treadmill protocol; the Functional Disability Inventory; the Pain Stages of Change Questionnaire, adolescent version; and the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, Teen Report, at 3 time points: at program entry, at the end of the intensive program, and 1Â year after the end of the program.ResultsSixty-four children (median age, 16Â years; 95% Caucasian; 94% female; median duration of symptoms, 21Â months) were studied. The mean pain score decreased significantly from program entry to the end of the program (from 66 of 100 to 25 of 100; PÂ =Â .001). At the 1-year follow-up, 33% reported no pain. All measures of function on the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Performance, Second Edition improved significantly and remained at that level or continued to improve over the subsequent year. The mean Bruce treadmill protocol time first increased from 588Â seconds to 801Â seconds (PÂ <Â .001) and then dropped to 750Â seconds (PÂ =Â .005), which is at the 90th percentile for age and sex. All Pain Stages of Change Questionnaire, adolescent version subset scores improved significantly initially and were stable or improved at 1Â year, as did the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, Teen Report total score.ConclusionChildren with fibromyalgia can be successfully treated without medications with a very intensive PT/OT and psychotherapy program. They have significantly improved pain and function by subject report and objective measures of function.