Treatment of fibromyalgia syndrome.

Author(s): Goldenberg DL

Affiliation(s): Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts.

Publication date & source: 1989-02, Rheum Dis Clin North Am., 15(1):61-71.

Publication type: Review

The therapeutic role of medications in fibromyalgia is reviewed. The tricyclics, amitriptyline and cyclobenzaprine, have been the most extensively evaluated, and in controlled studies have proven to be more effective than placebo or NSAIDs. Their mode of action is not known, but their effect may relate to a number of potential mechanisms. However, neither the tricyclics nor any other medication has provided long-term, clinically meaningful improvement in the majority of patients.