title: Treatment of fibromyalgia.
abstract: In this article, we investigate the range of treatments prescribed for fibromyalgia. The data suggest that the majority of those treated, 72 percent, receive only one pharmaceutical. An additional 18 percent of patients were prescribed two products and 10% received three products. Pregabalin (Lyrica(R)) monotherapy was the most commonly prescribed regimen (28% of patients) followed by duloxetine (Cymbalta(R)) monotherapy (6%). From a therapeutic class perspective, fibromyalgia patients received pain therapies (42%), antiepileptics (40%), antidepressants (28%), muscle relaxants (14%), and sleep agents (8%). An expert commentary is also included.
authors.affiliation: Ms. Cascade is Vice President, Strategic Research and Safety, Quintiles Inc., Falls Church, Virginia.
authors.forename: Elisa F
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Cascade
authors.forename: Amir H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Kalali
authors.forename: Nikhil D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Nihalani
authors.forename: Thomas L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Schwartz