Muscle Strength Training in Fibromyalgia Patients. Literature Review

Abstract

People with fibromyalgia (FM) suffer from chronic pain and other symptoms, which affect muscle strength and quality of life. The aim of the present review was to describe the characteristics of training programmes that assessed any strength-related variables in people with FM, specifically regarding prescription, findings, participant retention and research team. The search was carried out in the Cochrane, Medline and Redalyc databases, using the keywords: fibromyalgia and strength training. Experimental studies published from 2016 to 2020 were included, of which 16 articles were processed. The main findings were that this type of training was useful and safe, impacting pain control, while improving individual physical condition and functionality. Moreover, the estimated programme adherence rate was above 73% in most publications. Similarly, the programmes evaluated suggested participant acceptance and the achievement of favourable results in the short term. Lastly, it is important to note that the integration of the multidisciplinary team was a constant in this type of project.