Sverdrup Berit
Department of Rheumatology, Mälarsjukhuset, 631-88 Eskilstuna, Sweden.
J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2004 Mar;13(2):187-94. doi: 10.1089/154099904322966173.
Widespread muscular pain, tenderness, unrefreshing sleep, and fatigue all constitute the fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), which is often seen in both general and rheumatology practice, primarily in women. The etiology is unknown. The FMS patient usually looks normal. The cardinal finding is the presence of focal areas of hyperalgesia, that is, tender points. My clinical impression was that FMS patients often complained of dry skin. My hypothesis was that overambitious cleaning, resulting in dry skin, and regular use of cosmetics as moisturizers could contribute to their symptoms.
A prospective, randomized, controlled trial of 48 women with FMS (some of whom had a rheumatic condition) who were regular users of cosmetics was carried out to investigate if a reduced use of cosmetics would reduce the symptoms. The intervention group received special instructions on skin care, with reinforcement when needed.
After 2 years, there was significant improvement in pain (p < 0.02), sleep (p < 0.01), and stiffness (p < 0.02), together with better physical function (p < 0.01) and improved wellbeing (p < 0.01) in the experimental group, as measured by the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ).
The results should motivate further studies on the possible adverse effects of cosmetic use in FMS and perhaps other conditions.
广泛的肌肉疼痛、压痛、睡眠不佳和疲劳均构成纤维肌痛综合征（FMS），在普通科和风湿科门诊中均较为常见，主要见于女性。其病因不明。FMS患者通常外表正常。主要表现是存在痛觉过敏的局部区域，即压痛点。我的临床印象是FMS患者常诉说皮肤干燥。我的假设是过度清洁导致皮肤干燥，以及经常使用化妆品作为保湿剂可能会加重她们的症状。
对48名经常使用化妆品的FMS女性患者（其中一些患有风湿性疾病）进行了一项前瞻性、随机、对照试验，以研究减少化妆品使用是否会减轻症状。干预组接受了皮肤护理的特殊指导，并在需要时给予强化指导。
两年后，根据纤维肌痛影响问卷（FIQ）测量，试验组在疼痛（p < 0.02）、睡眠（p < 0.01）和僵硬（p < 0.02）方面有显著改善，身体功能（p < 0.01）和幸福感（p < 0.01）也有所改善。
这些结果应促使人们进一步研究化妆品使用在FMS及其他可能疾病中的潜在不良影响。
