What does pain therapy for fibromyalgia look like?

Like the therapy of other complex forms of pain, the pain therapy of fibromyalgia requires a multimodal approach. This is composed of various sub-areas, which include not only drug-based pain therapy but also psycho- and physiotherapeutic methods, physical procedures, patient training and relaxation methods. As far as pharmacological therapy is concerned, antidepressants and anticonvulsants play a particularly important role – classical pain medication and opioids alone often do not achieve satisfactory pain relief.

Apart from this, the great value of cardiovascular training in terms of aerobic fitness for fibromyalgia patients has become clear. The regular practice of sports such as swimming and walking provides many patients with relief from their symptoms. In addition, a whole-body heat therapy usually has a beneficial effect.

What does pain therapy for osteoarthritis look like?

Even today, the treatment of arthritic pain is often still not completely satisfactory. This is due on the one hand to the complex pain associated with osteoarthritis, but also to the phased progression of the disease. Thus, pain-free intervals alternate with painful ones.

The same applies to the mobility of the joints. Equivalent to other chronic pain syndromes, multimodal pain therapy has ultimately proven to be the best method of treating arthritic complaints. In this context, comprehensive patient information about the course of the disease and the ability to influence it is of importance.

Also topics such as disease-oriented behavior, as well as sports activities and physical stress in everyday life are addressed. In addition, different groups of substances for the inhibition of inflammation and pain reduction play a role on the drug level. Especially the so-called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and glucocorticoids have a pain-relieving effect and improve diagnosis.

Pain therapy can also be performed under local anaesthetic. However, the actual effectiveness of active ingredients such as chrondroitin, glucosamine and hyaluronic acid has not been clarified to date – various studies have come to different conclusions. In contrast, physical procedures, as well as physiotherapeutic methods, electrotherapy, hydro- and balneotherapy are integral parts of the pain therapy for osteoarthritis and often provide relief from the symptoms. The effectiveness of acupuncture for osteoarthritis-related pain in the knee joint has also been proven in the meantime, so that acupuncture is now also used in osteoarthritis therapy.