A guideline for the treatment of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) was developed in cooperation with 10 German medical and psychological associations and 2 patient self-help groups.
A systematic literature search including all controlled studies evaluating multicomponent therapy (MT) was performed in the Cochrane Library (1993-12/2006), Medline (1980-12/2006), PsychInfo (1966-12/2006) and Scopus (1980-12/2006). Levels of evidence were assigned according to the classification system of the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine. Grading of the strengths of recommendations was done according to the German program for disease management guidelines. Standardized procedures to reach a consensus on recommendations were used.
MT is superior to control groups or routine treatment (evidence level 1A) and should be offered to FMS patients (recommendation strength A).
Future studies should consider medication, other co-therapies and comorbidities. MT programs tailored to FMS subgroups should be tested.