What medications are used to treat fibromyalgia?

A number of medications can be used to help relieve a range of fibromyalgia symptoms. For example, antidepressants may reduce pain, sleep disturbance, depression, and some digestive symptoms. You may also need to use specific therapies for some symptoms, such as severe depression or anxiety, migraine, or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

The most important thing to remember about medications for fibromyalgia is that even the most effective ones offer modest benefit at best:

• Effective medications should be expected to reduce fibromyalgia pain and other symptoms by about 30%.
• Because symptom reduction with drugs is modest to moderate, medications should generally be used in conjunction with effective nondrug treatments.
• The most effective medications for fibromyalgia are antidepressants and some neuromodulating therapies. Both types of drugs work by correcting chemical imbalances in nerve chemicals within the nervous system, to help reduce fibromyalgia symptoms.
• Antidepressants and neuromodulating therapies reduce pain and poor sleep. Antidepressants are more beneficial for also reducing fatigue and mood problems.

Several different classes of medications may reduce fibromyalgia pain, including over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers like acetaminophen, aspirin and ibuprofen. Prescription antidepressants, anticonvulsants and opioids may also help relieve fibro pain if OTC products are not effective.

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