Health Discoveries in General Health News
Acute exercise more painful to vets than long-term regimen
August 24, 2010
A Wisconsin research team has found that Gulf War veterans with chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) find initial, acute exercise causes them more pain, while long-term exercise has the opposite effect.
The study, published in the American Pain Society's Journal of Pain, states that about 100,000 returning veterans report CMP symptoms similar to fibromyaglia. When researchers from the University of Wisconin and the Middleton Memorial Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, tested levels of pain sensitivity among veterans, they found the veterans reported lower pain thresholds, greater leg pain during exercise and more sensitivity after acute exercise than healthy subjects reported.
The researchers concluded that while initial exercise routines in CMP patients appear to exacerbate pain, regular, long-term exercise tends to reduce it. In fibromyalgia patients, previous studies also show that regular exercise is a successful treatment for managing pain, long-term disability and mood disorders.
Within the North Shore-LIJ Health System's Harvey Cushing Institutes of Neuroscience, fibromyalgia is one of the medical conditions treated within a collaborative program that consider physical and emotional aspects of pain. The institute focuses on restoring functions that have been lost to pain and provides specialized centers to help patients manage their pain appropriately.
The study, published in the American Pain Society's Journal of Pain, states that about 100,000 returning veterans report CMP symptoms similar to fibromyaglia. When researchers from the University of Wisconin and the Middleton Memorial Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, tested levels of pain sensitivity among veterans, they found the veterans reported lower pain thresholds, greater leg pain during exercise and more sensitivity after acute exercise than healthy subjects reported.
The researchers concluded that while initial exercise routines in CMP patients appear to exacerbate pain, regular, long-term exercise tends to reduce it. In fibromyalgia patients, previous studies also show that regular exercise is a successful treatment for managing pain, long-term disability and mood disorders.
Within the North Shore-LIJ Health System's Harvey Cushing Institutes of Neuroscience, fibromyalgia is one of the medical conditions treated within a collaborative program that consider physical and emotional aspects of pain. The institute focuses on restoring functions that have been lost to pain and provides specialized centers to help patients manage their pain appropriately.