The Role of Oxygen and Fibromyalgia

December 19, 2024 by Robert

Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) affects middle-aged women nine times more often than men. Symptoms associated with FMS are body aches and pain, stiffness, chronic fatigue, mitral valve prolapse, reproducible tenderness on specific points of the body, irritable bowel syndrome, tension headaches, and painful menstruation.

The causes are still not well understood; however, the belief is that one of the leading causes is the breakdown of muscle proteins due to a deficiency of oxygen (chronic hypoxia).

Hypoxia is a major factor leading to the symptoms of fibromyalgia. Oxygen is required to make energy or ATP. An important link missing in the successful treatment of fibromyalgia is oxygen.

— Journal-Advocate.com

A study, “Muscle Blood Flow, Oxygenation, and Metabolism in Women With Fibromyalgia,” found that the oxygen consumption rate of muscle tissue during exercise was significantly lower in subjects with FMS than in healthy controls. And their oxygenation recovery was longer in FMS subjects (by 50%) following fatiguing exercise and cuff occlusion. The suggestion is that the muscles of people with fibromyalgia syndromes work differently regarding oxygen.

Treatment for Fibromyalgia

One relatively new form of treatment for fibromyalgia is hyperbaric O² therapy (HBOT). Several studies in this area seem to show HBOT to have had a positive effect on fibromyalgia symptoms, such as muscle pain and tenderness.

A study performed by medical researchers at a Turkish military hospital revealed astonishing results when it comes to using HBOT on fibromyalgia patients. This double blind, placebo-controlled study exposed fibromyalgia patients to 15, 90-minute hyperbaric oxygen therapy treatments… The results of the study showed that the fibromyalgia patients receiving HBOT reported a decreased number of tender points and an increased pain threshold. In fact, after 15 sessions, the patients recorded half the number of original tender points and twice their original pain threshold. Those patients who received placebo HBOT recorded no improvements.

— Fibromyalgia-Symptoms.org

A clinical study on NIH.gov reports the following results and conclusion.

Results: Twenty-eight of the 32 study patients completed the 20 HBOT sessions. Pain scores and the symptoms of anxiety (but not those of depression) significantly improved after both 10 and 20 sessions, whereas fatigue and FM symptom severity scores significantly improved only after 20 sessions. There was no significant change in the quality of sleep. The adverse effects were limited.

Conclusions: These findings support the view that HBOT is an effective, rapid and safe means of treating various symptoms of FM.

One Man’s Experience with Oxygen and Fibromyalgia

The gentleman in the below video tells of his anecdotal experience with HBOT and its effects on his FMS. He reports the lessening of some of his symptoms but not all.

If hyperbaric oxygen treatments are not in reach for you, consider our oxygen supplement to increase the available oxygen for your cells.

Summary

Article Name

The Role of Oxygen and Fibromyalgia

Description

Oxygen and Fibromyalgia. It is believed one of the main causes of FMS is the breakdown of muscle proteins due to a deficiency of oxygen (chronic hypoxia).

Author

Robert Woolley