Fibromyalgia can no longer be called the ?invisible? syndrome

Using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), researchers in France were able to detect functional abnormalities in certain regions in the brains of patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia, reinforcing the idea that symptoms of the disorder are related to a dysfunction in those parts of the brain where pain is processed. ?Fibromyalgia is frequently considered an ?invisible syndrome? since musculoskeletal imaging is negative,? said Eric Guedj, M.D., and lead author of the study. ?Past imaging studies of patients with the syndrome, however, have shown above-normal cerebral blood flow (brain perfusion) in some areas of the brain and below-normal in other areas. After performing whole-brain scans on the participants, we used a statistical analysis to study the relationship between functional activity in even the smallest area of the brain and various parameters related to pain, disability and anxiety/depression.? In the study, which was reported in the November issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine, 20 women diagnosed with fibromyalgia and 10 healthy women as a control group responded to questionnaires to determine levels of pain, disability, anxiety and depression. SPECT was then performed, and positive and negative correlations were determined. More »


Studies examine treatment for gout and the condition?s protective effects

The goal in treating patients with gout is to reduce acute attacks by lowering serum urate levels, which are usually high in this disease. At the same time, high serum urate levels have been shown to lower the risk of developing Parkinson?s disease (PD). A new study compared the safety and efficacy of febuxostat, a new drug being developed for gout that was recently approved for use in Europe, and a commonly used drug that has been around for years. Another study examined the link between gout and PD in individuals 65 years and older. The studies were published in the November issue of Arthritis Care & Research. For many years, the most common drug used to treat gout was allopurinol, which is generally safe and effective, but has been known to cause life-threatening rashes in rare cases. Its dosage often has to be reduced in patients with impaired kidney function, but previous clinical trials have shown that febuxostat is effective at lowering urate levels and that its dosage may not need to be adjusted. A Phase III, randomized, double-blind multi-center trial, known as the APEX (Allopurinol- and Placebo-Controlled, Efficacy Study of Febuxostat) trial, was conducted to compare the safety and efficacy of febuxostat with allopurinal and a placebo in patients with high urate levels (uricemia) and gout, some of whom had impaired renal function. It was the largest randomized controlled clinical trial to date comparing the two drugs. Led by H. Ralph Schumacher of the University of Pennsylvania, the 28-week trial involved 1,072 patients at 167 sites in the U.S. who had serum urate levels of at least 8 mg/dl and gout, with normal or impaired renal function. More »


What?s Your Child?s Genetic Destiny for Disease?

What?s your child?s ?genetic destiny?? Does diabetes run in your family? Or has a genetic test indicated that your child may some day be at risk for developing heart disease? In the current era of direct-to-consumer genetic testing, many fear that individuals will put too much faith in a genetic test result. But a new study from the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children?s Hospital indicates that information from family history and genetic testing caused equal concern among parents about their children?s risk of disease. ?We were surprised to find that parents were not overly concerned about a child?s genetic test result compared to a child?s genetic risk that comes from family history? says study lead author Beth A. Tarini, M.D., an assistant professor of pediatrics and a member of the Child Health Evaluation and Research (CHEAR) Unit in the Division of General Pediatrics at Mott. ?Our findings suggest that even as genetic tests become more accessible, family history will likely remain a meaningful part of a child?s health evaluation and our discussions with parents.? More »