Clinical Study

Plasma Cytokine Levels in Fibromyalgia and Their Response to 15 Weeks of Progressive Resistance Exercise or Relaxation Therapy

Table 1

Background data of women with fibromyalgia (FM) and healthy controls (HC).

VariablesFM
HC
value

Age (yr)51.2 (±9.4)48.2 (±11.4)0.124
BMI (kg/m2)28.0 (±5.2)24.2 (±3.8)<0.001
Systolic BP (mmHg)130.0 (±18.9)123.3 (13.0)0.001
Diastolic BP (mmHg)81.6 (±9.1)77.8 (±8.8)0.002
Medication (%)
 Antidepressants (SSRI, SNRI, TCA)43.90
 Anticonvulsants4.90
Pain duration (yr)10.5 (±7.7)NA
Tender points (n)15.7 (±1.9)NA
VAS global pain (0–100)52.0 (34.0)0 (0)<0.001
PPT (kPa)184.8 (±80.1)357.9 (±108.9)0.001
Hand grip force (N)192.3 (±73.8)275.0 (±50.8)<0.001
Elbow flexion force (kg)12.0 (5.4)18.2 (5.2)<0.001
Knee extension force (N)315.4 (±110.4)411.0 (88.3)<0.001
6MWT (m)551.4 (±71.0)656.9 (±60.1)<0.001
PDI (0–70)37.0 (17.0)7.0 (0.0)<0.001
HADS depression (0–21)7.0 (4.0)1.0 (3.0)<0.001
HADS anxiety (0–21)8.0 (6.0)3.0 (4.0)<0.001
PCS (0–52)20.0 (17.0)5.0 (12.0)<0.001
SF36-PSC (0–100)30.3 (9.8)56.4 (3.8)<0.001
SF36-MSC (0–100)38.5 (19.0)57.7 (5.7)<0.001
FIQ (0–100)61.1 (24.9)3.5 (9.1)<0.001
MFI (0–20)
 General fatigue19.0 (4.0)7.0 (4.0)<0.001
 Physical fatigue17.0 (5.0)5.0 (5.0)<0.001
 Reduced activity15.0 (5.0)6.0 (4.5)<0.001
 Reduced motivation10.0 (5.0)5.0 (2.5)<0.001
 Mental fatigue16.0 (5.0)7.0 (4.0)<0.001

Data are presented as mean (±SD) or median (interquartile range). BMI = body mass index; BP = blood pressure; FIQ = fibromyalgia impact questionnaire; HADS = hospital anxiety and depression scale; MFI = multidimensional fatigue inventory; PDI = pain disability index; PPT = pressure pain thresholds (mean of 8 sites); SF36 = Short Form Health Survey 36, physical (PSC) and mental summary components (MSC); SNRI = serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor; SSRI = selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor; TAC = tricyclic antidepressant; 6MWT = 6-min walk test; VAS = visual analogue scale. Italic texts denote significant differences (t-test or Mann–Whitney U test; ).