Vitamin D supplementation reduces pain and improves QoL in fibromyalgia: Study
Italy: A recent study in the journal Nutrients has found that vitamin D supplementation may reduce the pain associated with both fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain (CMP). The findings were significant, particularly for individuals who were vitamin D deficient.
Fibromyalgia syndrome and chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain are diffuse suffering syndromes that impede normal activities. The role of vitamin D in the treatment of these diseases is controversial. Considering this, Mauro Lombardo, Department of Human Sciences and Promotion of the Quality of Life, San Raffaele Open University, Rome, Italy, and colleagues conducted a systematic literature review of randomized controlled trials (RCT) to determine whether vitamin D (25OHD) deficiency is more prevalent in CMP patients and assessed the effects of vitamin D supplementation in pain management in these individuals.
For this purpose, the researchers searched the online databases published in English from 1 January 1990 to 10 July 2022. 14 out of 434 studies assessed, satisfied the eligibility criteria.
Based on the review, the researchers found the following:
- In the review of three studies, of which two had the best-quality evidence, a correlation between diffuse muscle pain and 25OHD deficiency was confirmed.
- Six studies, of which four had the best-quality evidence, demonstrated that appropriate supplementation may have beneficial effects in patients with established blood 25OHD deficiency.
- Eight studies, of which six had the best-quality evidence, demonstrated that 25OHD supplementation results in pain reduction.
This led the researchers to conclude, "our review indicates that vitamin D deficiency is seen frequently in FMS and CMP patients, and vitamin D supplementation can be proposed to alleviate musculoskeletal pain and improve the quality of life in vitamin D-deficient patients with FMS and CMP."
"The therapeutic approach to FMS and CMP necessarily involves a multidisciplinary protocol, which should be conducted as a team because of the many facets of the pathologies and the many compromised systems," they wrote.
Reference:
Lombardo M, Feraco A, Ottaviani M, Rizzo G, Camajani E, Caprio M, Armani A. The Efficacy of Vitamin D Supplementation in the Treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome and Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain. Nutrients. 2022 Jul 22;14(15):3010. doi: 10.3390/nu14153010. PMID: 35893864; PMCID: PMC9330000.
