Electroconvulsive therapy for hard-to-treat fibromyalgia
Treatments studied
Part of Bones, joints & muscles, Brain & nervous system clinical trials.
This study tests whether electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), a treatment that uses electrical stimulation to the brain, can help people with fibromyalgia who have not improved with standard medications. Participants will receive ECT sessions over 4 weeks and be followed for 3 months after treatment.
Summary written for real people, not researchers, by Clin2.
Who can take part
- You have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia by a doctor using standard criteria.
- You are between 18 and 70 years old.
- Your fibromyalgia symptoms are severe (score of 39 or higher on a standard questionnaire) despite taking at least two medications for at least 3 months.
- You can keep taking your current medications at the same dose for at least 4 weeks before starting the study.
- You are available to start ECT within 4 weeks or after a 16-week waiting period, and to attend a follow-up visit 3 months after finishing ECT.
- You do not have epilepsy, a history of head trauma, or a psychiatrist-diagnosed depression.
Quick eligibility check
Answer a few plain-language questions, based on this study's own requirements, to get a preliminary sense of fit.
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