Show Me the Science

• By Elisha Bury
• May 01, 2008

The following studies show a link between sleep and fibromyalgia:

Elevated Inflammatory Markers in Response to Prolonged Sleep Restriction Are Associated with Increased Pain Experience in Healthy Volunteers, Sleep, Sept. 1, 2007 — Authors concluded that insufficient sleep quantity may facilitate and/or exacerbate pain.

Fibromyalgia Syndrome: Overnight Falls in Arterial Oxygen Saturation, American Journal of Medicine, July 1996 — Authors concluded that fibromyalgia patients showed small overnight drops in oxygen saturation and spent more time during the night below 90 and 92 percent than a control group.

Hypersomnolence in Fibromyalgia Syndrome, Clinical and Experimental Rheumatology, January/February 2002 — Authors concluded that the occurrence of daytime hypersomnolence in fibromyalgia patients is linked to a greater severity of fibromyalgia symptoms and to more severe polysomnographic alterations.

Inspiratory Airflow Dynamics During Sleep in Women with Fibromyalgia, Sleep, May 1, 2004 — Authors showed that treatment of 14 consecutive patients with nasal CPAP resulted in an improvement in functioning ranging from 23-47 percent. The conclusion was that inspiratory airflow limitation is a common pattern during sleep in women with fibromyalgia.

Periodic Breathing During Sleep in Patients Affected by Fibromyalgia Syndrome, European Respiratory Journal, July 1999 — Fibromyalgia patients complaining of excessive daytime sleepiness had a higher number of tender points, about twice as many arousals per hour and a lower sleep efficiency than patients who did not report this symptom.

Sleep Apnea in Male Patients with Fibromyalgia Syndrome, American Journal of Medicine, May 1993 — Authors concluded that while sleep apnea is not a significant cause of fibromyalgia symptoms in females, in male patients, sleep apnea was observed in a large percentage and may be a marker for fibromyalgia.

Sleep-Disordered Breathing Among Women with Fibromyalgia Syndrome, Journal of Clinical Rheumatology, December 2006 — Authors concluded that a large proportion of women with fibromyalgia in general rheumatology practice had sleep-disordered breathing.

This article originally appeared in the Respiratory Management May 2008 issue of HME Business.