Effects of manual lymphatic drainage on pain intensity, impact of disease and quality of life in women with fibromyalgia syndrome: a double-blind randomized sham-controlled trial.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD) on the pain intensity, impact of the disease, and health-related quality of life among women diagnosed with Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS).

METHODS

The study was designed as a single-center, double-blind, randomized, and sham-controlled trial. Twenty women with FMS were included and randomized into intervention (n = 11) and sham control (n = 9) groups. In the intervention group, MLD was applied in addition to medical treatment, whereas the sham control group received sham MLD along with medical care over a period of 3 weeks. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ-R), and 12-item Short Form Survey (SF-12) were used to measure outcomes. Participants were assessed baseline, immediately after the treatment, at 12 weeks, and at 24 weeks.

RESULTS

The VAS score, the FIQ-R symptom and FIQ-R overall scores, and SF-12 score showed a statistically significant time effect (p < 0.05) in intervention group. No significant main effects in any parameters for any time interval were observed in the sham group (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

MLD added to medical treatment may be an effective alternative method that could be used in the treatment of FMS to reduce pain intensity and improve impact of disease.