Effects of a low-pressure hyperbaric oxygen therapy on psychological constructs related to pain and quality of life in women with fibromyalgia: A randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Self-reported psychological variables related to pain have been posited as the major contributors to the quality of life of fibromyalgia (FM) women and should be considered when implementing therapeutic strategies among this population. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of low-pressure hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) on psychological constructs related to pain (i.e., pain catastrophism, pain acceptance, pain inflexibility, mental defeat) and quality of life in women with FM. METHODS: This was a randomized controlled trial. Thirty-three women with FM were randomly allocated to a low-pressure hyperbaric oxygen therapy group (HBOTG) (n=17), who received an 8-week intervention (5 sessions per week), and a control group (CG) (n=16). All women were assessed at baseline (T0) and upon completion of the study (T1) for self-perceived pain intensity, pain catastrophism, pain acceptance, pain inflexibility, mental defeat and quality of life. RESULTS: At T1, the HBOTG improved across all variables related to pain (i.e. self-perceived pain intensity, pain catastrophism, pain acceptance, pain flexibility, mental defeat) (p<0.05) and quality of life (p<0.05). In contrast, the CG showed no improvements in any variable. Furthermore, significant differences between the groups were found in quality of life (p<0.05) after the intervention. CONCLUSIONS: HBOT is effective at improving the psychological constructs related to pain (i.e. pain catastrophism, pain acceptance, pain flexibility, mental defeat) and quality of life among women with FM. Clinical Trial Link Clinical Trials gov identifier (NCT03801109).

Effects of massage therapy alone or together with passive mobilisations on weight gain and length of hospitalisation in preterm infants: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The effect of massage therapy alone or together with passive mobilisations on weight gain and length of hospitalisation in very preterm and moderate-to-late preterm infants remains to be elucidated. AIM: To compare massage therapy alone or combined with passive mobilisations with a control group in preterm infants. STUDY DESIGN: A systematic review and meta-analysis according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement was conducted. Randomised controlled trials comparing massage therapy alone or combined with passive mobilisations with a control group in preterm infants were included. MEDLINE, EMBASE, ENFISPO, PEDro and Cochrane databases were searched up to March 2022. SUBJECTS: Preterm infants. OUTCOME MEASURES: Weight gain and time of hospitalisation. RESULTS: Compared to usual care, massage therapy combined with passive mobilisations was demonstrated to be more effective in improving weight gain (standardized mean difference [95%CI] 0.67 [0.31, 1.02]) and reducing length of hospitalisation (0.53 [0.10, 0.97]) outcomes. However, massage therapy alone was not effective in improving weight gain (1.14 [-0.22, 2.49]). No differences in the effectiveness of these therapies between groups according to gestational age were found (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Based on fair-to-high quality evidence, massage therapy combined with passive mobilisations significantly improves weight gain and reduces length of hospitalisation in premature infants. However, massage therapy alone does not achieve these improvements.