Exercise and Pain Reduction Therapy (EXPRT): The Feasibility of Community-Based Exercise and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Patients with Fibromyalgia

The purpose of EXPRT was to assess the feasibility of community-based exercise and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for fibromyalgia (FM). Feasibility was determined by recruitment, retention, acceptability of treatment, and limited efficacy. Twenty-one FM patients underwent a 12-week intervention involving three supervised group-based exercise sessions and one CBT session per week at a YMCA. The Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ-R) and Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) were used to assess FM-related outcomes. Attendance, change in exercise minutes, and participant satisfaction were assessed to evaluate acceptability of treatment. Twelve participants completed follow-up assessment, yielding 57% retention. A total of 387 patients were screened, of which 21 (5.4%) were eligible and participated in the study. Within group analyses revealed statistically significant improvement in both outcome measures (p’s < 0.05). Mean number of sessions attended was 15.14 10.46 out of 36 sessions. Average walking time per session increased from 11.8 to 22.6 minutes. Participants reported feeling satisfied with the exercise sessions, CBT sessions, and their pain management post-treatment. Although the reported effects on pain measures are likely inflated and recruitment and retention posed significant challenges, it appears combined community-based exercise and CBT may be well-tolerated and potentially beneficial for the management of FM.

Grantor dc:publisher

Wake Forest University

Year dc:date.issued

2017

Author dc:creator

• DiCicco, Natalie Lynn

• behavioral

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10339/82185

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:wakespace.lib.wfu.edu:10339/82185