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Acupuncture/ pressureBiofeedbackChiropracticHypnosisMagnesiumMagnetsMassageSAMeTai Chi

The NCCAM view of CAM for fibromyalgia

JR

The National Center for CAM (NCCAM) has summarized the state of the science.

Acupuncture

  • Has produced mixed results.
  • There’s some evidence supporting electroacupuncture, but the effects of are mostly short lived.
  • Traditional acupuncture had negative results in 2 studies.

Magnesium

  • No conclusive scientific evidence that magnesium supplements relieve fibromyalgia symptoms.

Massage therapy

  • Modest, preliminary support.
  • 2 studies had positive findings, while 2 others reported no benefits or short-term improvement.

SAMe supplements

  • Several small studies had mixed results, with some evidence of benefit.
  • More research is needed.

CAM with insufficient evidence

  • Biofeedback
  • Chiropractic
  • Hypnosis
  • Magnet therapy

The bottom line?
NCCAM has funded several fibromyalgia studies including tai chi, acupuncture, and electroencephalograph (EEG) biofeedback.

7/11/08 17:18 JR

Hi, I’m JR

John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

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