A study of the description of exercise programs evaluated in randomized controlled trials involving people with fibromyalgia using different reporting tools, and validity of the tools related to pain relief

Abstract

Rationale: Exercise programs for the management of fibromyalgia are well recognized as being effective. However, the incomplete descriptions of exercise programs make replication and implementation difficult. Also, existing reporting tools have not been validated in relation to pain relief as well as with each other. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the description of exercise programs in randomized control trials for the management of fibromyalgia using different assessment tools, and the correlations of each tool in relation to effectiveness of pain relief of fibromyalgia, and the correlations between each tool. Method/Results: Through a consensus made by two different pairs of reviewers and an arbitrator, the mean total scores for the exercise programs were reported: 10.61/19 for Consensus on Exercise Reporting Template; 4.17/12 for Template for Intervention Description and Replication; 7.05/12 for the Consensus on Therapeutic Exercise Training; and 2.50/4 (aerobic) and 2.36/5 (flexibility and resistance) for the 2016 American College of Sports Medicine guidelines. This demonstrates generally low reporting scores (less than 60% out of the total number of items were reported). Overall, low correlations (Cohen’s kappa value, ranging from −0.47 (poor) to 0.313 (fair)) were found between all tools and pain relief. Good to excellent correlations (0.680–0.908) among the reporting tools were shown. Conclusion: Incomplete descriptions of exercise programs were consistently shown among the randomized clinical trials assessed in this study. The overall weak correlations demonstrated that the reporting tools have the limited ability to determine whether exercise programs were or were not effective for pain relief among individuals with fibromyalgia.

How well do published randomized controlled trials on pelvic floor muscle training interventions for urinary incontinence describe the details of the intervention? A review

“…These results align with the findings of Hay-Smith et al, 37 as well as other studies that have shown poor exercise-based intervention reporting in the physiotherapy management of pelvic floor and other conditions. [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] This trend across the physiotherapy literature demonstrates the necessity for the systematic use of standardized instruments such as CERT and TIDieR to detail, as much as possible, all of the parameters of an exercise intervention to facilitate best practices implementation. The most poorly reported items on the three different instruments suggest that researchers should pay more attention to describing the following components of PFMT exercise interventions for UI in women:…”

“…The training was provided by a third physiotherapist and doctoral candidate (author's initials removed to protect blinding) in Rehabilitation Sciences who had used these scales in four previous evaluations of exercise reporting in other areas of physiotherapy. [5][6][7] To ensure proper understanding and application, three RCTs describing exercise interventions for knee osteoarthritis, that were previously assessed by (author's initials removed to protect blinding), were used to assess each reviewer's readiness to begin the data extraction process. Once ready, each reviewer independently scored the included PFMT trials with each of the three different exercise-reporting tools, blinded to the other reviewer's scores.…”

“…Physiotherapy is an evidence‐based science that has produced good quality research to guide treatment and clinical decision‐making. Recent studies in other areas of physiotherapy have, however, revealed gaps in reporting on exercise‐based interventions, which can lead to difficulties in reproducing the interventions in clinical settings . Indeed, Yamato et al, reported that for most physiotherapy trials, the interventions are unreproducible.…”

“…Recent studies in other areas of physiotherapy have, however, revealed gaps in reporting on exercise-based interventions, which can lead to difficulties in reproducing the interventions in clinical settings. [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] Indeed, Yamato et al, 12 reported that for most physiotherapy trials, the interventions are unreproducible. Poorly reported interventions can create barriers to implementation of best practices that may affect treatment effectiveness, not allowing patients to receive up-todate evidence-based interventions.…”

Does whole body vibration exercise improve oxidative stress markers in women with fibromyalgia?

“…The management of FM is based on symptomatic multidisciplinary treatment through pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic strategies. Among non-pharmacologic treatments, exercise, cognitive behavioral therapy, and education have the strongest efficacy evidence (10,11). Bote and colleagues demonstrated that mild cycling improves the inflammatory and stress status of FM.…”