ProHealth.com
August 25, 2004
The University of Michigan is seeking help in finding answers to painful questions through a new registry and fund for chronic pain syndromes. People with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue and other syndromes are needed for studies.
The new effort at the University of Michigan Health System aims to accelerate the understanding of chronic multi-symptom illnesses.
The U of M Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center is launching a clinical trials registry for people over the age of 18 who are willing to volunteer for studies now and in the future.
The studies will use a variety of techniques, from brain scanning and acupuncture to new medications and talk therapy, to help experts understand and find new treatments for fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue and other ailments.
Meanwhile, the research will get financial support from a new fund established by the family of Gregory Shane, a young fibromyalgia patient from California. The fund is open for donations from anyone who wants to help U of M find scientific answers and evidence-based therapies in fibromyalgia and related disorders.
"We still have so many questions to answer in chronic pain and fatigue syndromes, and the answers can't come fast enough for those who are suffering right now," said Dr. Daniel J. Clauw, the center's director and a professor of rheumatology at the University of Michigan Medical School.
"By having a registry of patients we can turn to when we need participants for a trial, and a fund dedicated solely to supporting research, we help to make progress faster than ever before," he said.
He credits the Shane family for leading the fundraising effort.
Clauw notes that the registry needs people with a variety of conditions, and healthy people who can act as comparisons.
People who have been diagnosed with or have symptoms consistent with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, Gulf War Veterans Illness, irritable bowel syndrome, vulvodynia, temporomandibular joint dysfunction, interstitial cystitis, migraine, tension headache, and multiple chemical sensitivity are all needed for studies that are open now or should be recruiting in coming months.
For more information about the registry, the fund, and the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center, visit www.med.umich.edu/painresearch or call (866) 288-0046.
|
|
