Efficacy of Farabloc as an analgesic in primary fibromyalgia

The goal of our study was to determine the efficacy of Farabloc, an electromagnetic shielding fabric compared to placebo fabric when worn as a nightgown, as an analgesic in patients hospitalized with fibromyalgia. In a rheumatologic and rehabilitation hospital, we performed a phase 1, single-blind s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical rheumatology 2007-03, Vol.26 (3), p.405-410
Main Authors: Bach, Gerhard L, Clement, Douglas B
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Analgesia - methods
Cross-Over Studies
Electromagnetic Fields - adverse effects
Female
Fibromyalgia - therapy
Hospitalization
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Pain
Pain Management
Pain Measurement
Protective Clothing
Single-Blind Method
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Summary:The goal of our study was to determine the efficacy of Farabloc, an electromagnetic shielding fabric compared to placebo fabric when worn as a nightgown, as an analgesic in patients hospitalized with fibromyalgia. In a rheumatologic and rehabilitation hospital, we performed a phase 1, single-blind study of patients using Farabloc (F) or placebo (P) gowns for 8 h per night during the 20-day hospitalization and a phase 2, single-blind crossover study of patients using both F and P gowns randomly and alternatively switching after 10 of 21 days hospitalization (phase 1: 42 F, mean age 49.02 years, 35 female, 7 male; 84 P, mean age 48.08 years, 72 female, 12 males; phase 2: 25 F/P, P/F, or P/P, mean age 44.0 years, 24 female, 1 male). The study involved randomly selected and blinded use of hospital gown 8 h per night of either F or P fabric. The main outcome measures were changes from admission or midpoint to discharge in quantity of pain (QN), quality of pain (QL), and paracetamol use (PU). In phase 1, all three variables significantly favored F over P when using paired t test, two sample t test, Mann-Whitney, and analysis of covariance tests. QN was reduced (F = -2.03 -/+ 0.99*, P = 0.59 -/+ 0.71). QL was reduced (F = -10.64 -/+ 5.69*, P = -2.54 -/+ 3.40). PU was reduced (F = 10.69 -/+ 6.68*, P = 26.12 -/+ 9.37). In phase 2, comparing midpoint to discharge levels in the three variables again favored P/F over F/P and P/P (>0.001): QN (P/F +16.00 -/+ 8.35* F/P -13.27 -/+ 11.40), QL (P/F +8.71 -/+ 4.75* F/P -6.55 -/+ 5.59), and PU (F -9.29 -/+ 4.39* P -18.00 -/+ 5.27) (*p =
ISSN:0770-3198
1434-9949
DOI:10.1007/s10067-006-0494-9