Fibromyalgia likely the result of autoimmune problems: study

New research from King’s College London, the University of Liverpool and the Karolinska Institutet has shown that many of the symptoms of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) are caused by antibodies that increase the activity of pain-sensing nerves throughout the body. The team’s results, published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, suggest that fibromyalgia is a disease of the immune system, rather than the currently held view that it originates in the brain.

FMS is commonly characterised by widespread pain throughout the body, as well as fatigue (often referred to as ‘fibro fog’) and emotional distress. Current estimates suggest that at least one in 40 people are affected by FMS worldwide (80% of which are women), with the condition most commonly developing between the ages of 25 and 55 — although children can also get it. It is, however, particularly difficult to diagnose and manage because its causes are unknown, and treatment often proves ineffective.

The researchers injected mice with antibodies from people living with FMS and observed that the mice rapidly developed an increased sensitivity to pressure and cold, as well as displaying reduced movement grip strength. In contrast, mice that were injected with antibodies from healthy people were unaffected, demonstrating that patient antibodies cause, or at least are a major contributor to, the disease.

Furthermore, the mice injected with fibromyalgia antibodies recovered after a few weeks, when antibodies had been cleared from their system. This finding strongly suggests that therapies which reduce antibody levels in patients are likely to be effective treatments. Such therapies are already available and are used to treat other disorders that are caused by autoantibodies.

“Establishing that fibromyalgia is an autoimmune disorder will transform how we view the condition and should pave the way for more effective treatments for the millions of people affected,” said Dr David Andersson, study primary investigator, King’s College London.

“Our work has uncovered a whole new area of therapeutic options and should give real hope to fibromyalgia patients. Previous exploration of therapies has been hampered by our limited understanding of the illness. This should now change.”

“When I initiated this study in the UK, I expected that some fibromyalgia cases may be autoimmune,” added Dr Andreas Goebel, the study’s principal clinical investigator from the University of Liverpool. “But David’s team have discovered pain-causing antibodies in each recruited patient. The results offer amazing hope that the invisible, devastating symptoms of fibromyalgia will become treatable.”

“Antibodies from people with FMS living in two different countries, the UK and Sweden, gave similar results, which adds enormous strength to our findings,” concluded Professor Camilla Svensson, the study’s primary investigator from Karolinska Institute. “The next step will be to identify what factors the symptom-inducing antibodies bind to. This will help us not only in terms of developing novel treatment strategies for FMS, but also of blood-based tests for diagnosis, which are missing today.”

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Antonioguillem

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