by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

I’m starting to wonder if we’re on the right path with fibromyalgia. Is it truly the type of disorder we think it is? Here are some clues I’ve come up with. What do you think, Sherlocks?

I recently wrote about a JAMA study that showed how well the antidepressant amitriptyline worked for fibromyalgia symptoms, though we don’t know why. That got me to thinking. We also don’t know why another drug, Lyrica, helps.

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by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

Everything old is new again.

Want to know the best fibromyalgia medicine?  Look back to the future.  Lyrica, Neurontin, Cymbalta?  Think cheaper.  It’s the one I’ve been prescribing for years for chronic pain. A recent study shows it works as well as, or better than, the newfangled ones.

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by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

When some say a disease doesn’t exist and others have no test to prove it does, those suffering have problems.

So it’s gone with fibromyalgia, a syndrome that causes ongoing muscle pain and fatigue, along with various other symptoms like decreased concentration and sleep disturbance. There is no objective test for diagnosis.

Some doctors think fibromyalgia is a variation of physical symptoms of depression; others don’t think it exists at all, as a disease.  But people suffer, mostly women.

Now, a new study gives hope. What if fibromyalgia really is all in your head?

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