The following is a summary of “Aerobic Exercise Prescription for Pain Reduction in Fibromyalgia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis,” published in the January 2025 issue of Pain by Casanova-Rodríguez et al.
Fibromyalgia is a condition marked by varying degrees of disabling pain and aerobic exercise may help affected individuals in alleviating pain.
Researchers conducted a retrospective study to assess the required dose of aerobic exercise, based on the frequency, intensity, type, time, volume and progression (FITT-VP) model, for achieving clinically significant pain reductions.
They searched the Web of Science (WoS), PEDro, PubMed, and Scopus databases for randomized clinical trials from July to October 2023. The risk of bias was estimated by the Cochrane Risk of Bias assessment tool 2.
The results showed 17 studies with risk of bias varying: 6 studies had low risk, 5 had some concerns, and 6 had high risk. Aerobic exercise interventions were assessed using the FITT-VP model, with frequencies ranging from 1 to 10 sessions per week, intensities from light to vigorous, and types including music-based, interval, pool-based exercises, stationary cycling, swimming, and walking. Intervention durations ranged from 3 to 24 weeks, with session lengths from 10 to 45 minutes. Most studies showed significant improvements favoring aerobic exercise (MD −0.49; CI [−0.90, −0.08; P = 0.02]), with moderate to low heterogeneity in subgroup analyses.
Investigators concluded the efficacy of aerobic exercise in reducing pain among individuals with fibromyalgia, highlighting the importance of individualized exercise dosing to enhance adherence and improve clinical outcomes.
Source: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ejp.4783
