Although knowledge about fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) has expanded rapidly in recent years, fundamental questions about its cause, diagnosis and treatment remain unanswered.
CRU expertise in Vienna
The program of the 7th Fibromyalgia Congress was also enriched this year by contributions from Würzburg. Prof. Dr. med. Heike Rittner, scientific coordinator of the Clinical Research Unit (CRU) ResolvePain and head of the Interdisciplinary Pain Center at the University Hospital of Würzburg (UKW), spoke about “Neuroimmune Interactions: A New Frontier in Fibromyalgia Research”. Prof. Dr. med. Claudia Sommer, Senior Consultant at the Department of Neurology and CRU spokesperson, discussed the latest findings on the detection of this difficult-to-diagnose disease in her presentation “What Happens to Small Neurons in Fibromyalgia?”.
New perspectives in research
Research into fibromyalgia has been conducted in Würzburg for years. The two pain researchers and their teams have repeatedly contributed to new knowledge about fibromyalgia syndrome. The latest findings from Sommer's working group suggest that the disease may be caused by an incorrect reaction of the immune system. Heike Rittner compares fibromyalgia with “complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS)” and gains a better understanding of the mechanisms and treatment options for both diseases from this comparison. This will be a focus of her work in the second funding period of Clinical Research Group 5001.