AB0957 IS AQUATIC THERAPY MORE EFFECTIVE THAN LAND-BASED THERAPY IN REDUCING PAIN OF WOMEN WITH FIBROMYALGIA?

Abstract

Background:Fibromyalgia is a rheumatic disorder characterized by chronic widespread pain often associated with fatigue, unrefreshed sleep and cognitive problems with an increasing prevalence. Aquatic therapy has already been used for managing the symptoms of this syndrome. However, it is not clear whether there is a superiority of aquatic therapy over land-based therapy in improving the symptoms of fibromyalgia patients.Objectives:Determine the effectiveness of two physiotherapy protocols: aquatic therapy versus land-based therapy, for decreasing pain in women with fibromyalgia.Methods:The study protocol was a single-blind randomized controlled trial. Forty women diagnosed with fibromyalgia were randomly assigned into two groups: Aquatic Therapy (n = 20) or Land-based Therapy (n = 20). Both interventions include 60-min therapy sessions, structured into four sections: Warm-up, Proprioceptive Exercises, Stretching and Relaxation. These sessions were carried out three times a week for three months. The variables analyzed were: pain intensity (Visual Analogue Scale [VAS]), pain threshold (algometer), quality of life (Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire [FIQR]), sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI]), fatigue (Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory [MFI]) and physical ability (6-minute Walk Test [6MWT]). Outcome measures were evaluated at baseline, at the end of the 3-month intervention period, and 6-weeks post-treatment. Statistical analysis will be carried out using the SPSS 21.0 program for Windows and a significance level of p ≤ 0.05 was used for all tests.Results:At the end of intervention period, both therapies were effective in improving pain intensity (p<0.05), pain threshold (p<0.05), quality of life (p<0.05), fatigue (p<0.05) and physical ability (p<0.05). For sleep quality, only the aquatic therapy group experienced a significant improvement (p=0.033). No differences were observed between the groups in post-treatment, but they were found at the follow-up, in favor of aquatic therapy for pain intensity (p=0.023) and sleep quality (p=0.030).Conclusion:Both physiotherapy interventions showed to be effective in reducing pain in patients with fibromyalgia. However, aquatic therapy was more effective in improving quality of sleep and decreasing pain intensity at six weeks of follow-up than land-based therapy. It seems that the therapeutic effects achieved in post-treatment were maintained for a longer time in the aquatic therapy group. Even so, in order to maintain the benefits obtained with the interventions, continuous physiotherapy treatment seems to be necessary.