Cranial electrotherapy stimulation and fibromyalgia.

Cranial electrotherapy stimulation (CES) is a well-documented neuroelectrical modality that has been proven effective in some good studies of fibromyalgia (FM) patients. CES is no panacea but, for some FM patients, the modality can be valuable. This article discusses aspects of both CES and FM and how they relate to the individual with the condition. FM frequently has many comorbidities such as anxiety, depression, insomnia and a great variety of different rheumatologic and neurological symptoms that often resemble multiple sclerosis, dysautonomias, chronic fatigue syndrome and others. However, despite long-standing criteria from the American College of Rheumatology for FM, some physicians believe there is probably no single homogeneous condition that can be labeled as FM. Whether it is a disease, a syndrome or something else, sufferers feel like they are living one disaster after another. Active self-involvement in care usually enhances the therapeutic results of various treatments and also improves the patient's sense of being in control of the condition. D-ribose supplementation may prove to significantly enhance energy, sleep, mental clarity, pain control and well-being in FM patients. A form of evoked potential biofeedback, the EPFX, is a powerful stress reduction technique which assesses the chief stressors and risk factors for illness that can impede the FM patient's built-in healing abilities. Future healthcare will likely expand the diagnostic criteria of FM and/or illuminate a group of related conditions and the ways in which the conditions relate to each other. Future medicine for FM and related conditions may increasingly involve multimodality treatment that features CES as one significant part of the therapeutic regimen. Future medicine may also include CES as an invaluable, cost-effective add-on to many facets of clinical pharmacology and medical therapeutics.

Expert Rev Med Devices. 2007 Jul;4(4):489-95.

Gilula MF.

President and Director, Life Energies Research Institute, 2510 Inagua Avenue, Miami, FL 33133, USA. mgilula@mindspring.com.