Cranial electrical stimulation improves symptoms and functional status in individuals with fibromyalgia.

To investigate the effects of microcurrent cranial electrical stimulation (CES) therapy on reducing pain and its associated symptoms in fibromyalgia (FM), we conducted a randomized, controlled, three-group (active CES device, sham device, and usual care alone [UC]), double-blind study to determine the potential benefit of CES therapy for symptom management in FM. Those individuals using the active CES device had a greater decrease in average pain (p = .023), fatigue (p = .071), and sleep disturbance (p = .001) than individuals using the sham device or those receiving usual care alone over time. Additionally, individuals using the active CES device had improved functional status versus the sham device and UC groups over time (p = .028).

A randomized, controlled, double-blind pilot study of the effects of cranial electrical stimulation on activity in brain pain processing regions in individuals with fibromyalgia.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of microcurrent cranial electrical stimulation (CES) therapy on activity in pain processing brain regions. DESIGN: A randomized, controlled, three-group, double-blind pilot study. PARTICIPANTS: Persons with physician-diagnosed fibromyalgia. INTERVENTION: Active CES device, sham device, and usual care alone. RESULTS: Those individuals using the active device had a greater decrease in average pain (P = .023) than individuals using the sham device or receiving usual care alone over time. Preliminary analyses of the functional magnetic resonance imaging data on a subset of six participants from each of the two device groups show that individuals using an active CES device had a decrease in activation in the pain processing regions of the brain compared to those using a sham device. CONCLUSIONS: The observed decrease in activation in the pain processing regions may indicate a decrease in neural activity in these regions that may be related to decreased pain. This is the first randomized, controlled trial of CES in patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia to report functional magnetic resonance imaging data.