Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0016053 (fibromyalgia)
 4,687 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The reactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis was investigated in 10 female patients fulfilling the Yunus criteria for the primary fibromyalgia syndrome (PFS) and in 10 matched, healthy and sedentary controls. The 2 groups were subjected to a dexamethasone suppression (DXM) test, a corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) test and an insulin induced hypoglycemia (IH) test. In the DXM test there was no escape from suppression in patients or controls. The CRH and the IH tests showed a markedly enhanced, and statistically significant, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) release in patients with PFS versus controls, while the cortisol response in both groups was not different. Our data suggest that fibromyalgia is related to a neuroendocrine disorder characterized by hyperreactive pituitary ACTH release and a relative adrenal hyporesponsiveness. This HPA response pattern is unique and contrasts to the hypercortisolemic responses observed in affective disorders, e.g., depression, which like PFS, are often thought to be precipitated by chronic stress. Our findings seem to indicate a relative adrenal insufficiency in PFS, which might serve clinically as an explanation for the reduced aerobic capacity and impaired muscle performance these patients display.
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PMID:Altered reactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in the primary fibromyalgia syndrome. 847 45

Women are four to eight times more likely to be affected by fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). A lack of cortisol, potentially due to an adrenocortical deficit is postulated in FMS. The cause of such adrenal insufficiency is unknown. It could be assumed that stress exposure during critical periods contributes to vulnerability for FMS. These critical periods might include prenatal periods in which adversities may lead to an impaired development of the adrenal cortex, especially in females. More than 50% of FMS patients report major life events before the onset of the disease. Possibly due to adrenal insufficiency they may not be able to dampen their stress response by secreting sufficient glucocorticoids. Thus, stress mediators, such as catecholamines and pro-inflammatory cytokines, may be disinhibited and affect brain function. This might result in an enhanced responsiveness to external and internal pain- and fatigue-eliciting stimuli. In a study with female FMS patients (N= 93) those patients with a shorter gestational length (<38 weeks) showed a lower cortisol awakening response (CAR) than FMS subjects with a gestational length >38 weeks (F((3,31))= 2.94, P= 0.038). Additionally, more than 70% reported severe psychological stress alone or in combination with other factors at disease onset.
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PMID:Sex-specific prenatal programming: a risk for fibromyalgia? 1912 Jan 40

Chronic stress, understood as a disturbance of the body homeostasis, is partially driven by many hormonal pathways. Prolactine, TSH (Thyrotropin), vasopresin, FSH (Follicle-Stimulating Hormone), LH (Luteinizing Hormone), and GH (Growth Hormone) have been involved in many stress reactions. In acute stress, there are many evidences for the increased both cathecolaminergic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. In chronic conditions, these hyperactivations are controversial and some cases may present a true hypoadrenalism. There is no evidence that treating such androgen/glucocorticoids deficiency may relief chronic pain processes such as fibromyalgia. However, treating somatotroph axis dysfunctions (somatostatin, GH/IGF1 [growth hormone/ insulin-like growth factor-1]) with recombinant GH in carefully seleccioned subgroups of fibromyalgic syndrome, offers us an in-vivo model of the capacity of some hormones to modulate pain.
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PMID:[Stress and chronic pain: An endocrine perspective]. 2179 52

International interest on the benefits of using the steroid hormone Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) on various aspects of human health, including the regulation of mood, is increasing. This study aimed to review the scientific literature on the use of DHEA in the treatment of depression and depressive symptoms in other psychiatric and medical illnesses. PubMed, ISI Web of Knowledge and Virtual Health Library (VHL) databases were independently searched by two researchers using the following terms: depression, treatment, DHEA, and mood. Clinical studies were considered eligible when subjects were treated with DHEA and psychological assessments of depression were conducted. No time limits or language for this research were imposed. One 183 references were identified, and 22 references were selected to compose this review. Significant improvements related to the use of DHEA in patients with depression were observed, in addition to improvements in depressive symptoms in patients with schizophrenia, anorexia nervosa, HIV and adrenal insufficiency. No significant improvements were observed regarding depressive symptoms in patients with fibromyalgia; the results observed in patients with autoimmune diseases and healthy individuals remain contradictory. Although the selected studies demonstrated good methodological applications, most studies consisted of small samples, and only 3 studies were conducted in a young population. Therefore, we concluded that the studies published to date indicate promising results regarding the use of DHEA in the treatment of depression and depressive symptoms, especially in depression that is mild or resistant to conventional therapy.
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PMID:The effects of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) in the treatment of depression and depressive symptoms in other psychiatric and medical illnesses: a systematic review. 2503 97