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- Fibromyalgia solved; A pathology, not in the mind
WASHINGTON, October 26, 2013 — The Washington Times Communities recently published an article reassuring sufferers of fibromyalgia that the condition is physical, not mental. The article was based on newly published research by world renowned and esteemed scientist Dr. Frank Rice, his colleague Dr. Phillip Albrecht, and their staff in Albany, New York.
Dr. Rice has over 35 years of experience in somatosensory system biology, cerebral cortex development, cutaneous innervation, vascular organization, multi-disease studies and all things neurotropic. He is a product of Johns Hopkins University research.
SEE RELATED: Fibromyalgia solved; A pathology, not in the mind
Dr. Albrecht has 20 years in the biotechnology/pharmaceutical industry, neurotoxicology, sensory neurotoxicology and did his dissertation at Penn State University. He focused on molecular glial scar formation following disease and injury and received his post-doctorate at Georgetown University.
His additional training is in neuroscience, neuropharmacology, pain modulatory pathways and peripheral sensory systems. He also holds a B.S. in psychology and a Ph.D in neuroscience, both from Penn State.
Dr. Rice provided additional comments to The Communities concerning his research and fibromyalgia, and his concrete statement that fibromyalgia is a physical, not mental, illness.
Dr. Rice said, “We have been overwhelmed with the response from those afflicted with fibromyalgia. We want to assure you that we have received your message and that each of you is important to us. We want to get this message back to you without further delay.”
Dr. Rice asks you to take the research article by PubMed at NIH to doctors and those who denounce FM for proof of somatic pathology (physical illness).
Dr. Rice goes on to say he and his staff cannot answer questions about medications you may be currently taking. This topic will be covered by those with pharmaceutical expertise next week.
Dr. Rice continued, “Many of you are seeking specialists in your area for FM and other forms of chronic pain. We will work with the Neuropathic Pain Research Consortium and others to seek their recommendations for top pain specialists in as many areas of the country as they can cover. We will work with them to disseminate information.
“Many of you have shared stories of how FM may have started that can be quite different from each other. This is true. The source of FM can be varied. Some of you may have other afflictions as well. Despite difference in source, nearly all of you share the devastating consequences and impact that FM has or has had on the quality of your life and the frustration of finding a treatment that works.
“This is a major problem for all chronic pain condition and we are trying to find the right match for individual cases. We do know that those who refuse to surrender to their pain fare better.
“Some people ask if this study is a hoax. Our decades long research has been conducted with scientists from Karolinska Institute in Sweden, Johns Hopkins, Oxford, Heidelberg, Caltech, Harvard, Yale, U. of Cal, Cambridge, NIH, Israel Institutes of Technology, Uppsala and the Max Planck Institutes of Health.
“The standard for scientific studies is what is known as a “P” value. 0.05 is the science community standard meaning there is only a 5% possibility that the results could be explained by chance. Our study results have a ‘P’ value of 0.0001 meaning a 0.01% likelihood of occurring by chance,” concluded Dr. Rice.
Dr. Rice said he was moved to tears from sufferers’ personal stories in recent days. He encouraged readers to ask questions in the Comments section below.
The more we share, ask and discuss, the greater the focus on fibromyalgia and the quicker the response from other media and those interested. This kind of response is what moves mountains.
The next article will explain why the hands and feet play such a large role in losing heat and as the body fights to regulate a normal 98.6 temperature, it feels as if one has a fever.
It will also address the large role injury plays in fibromyalgia.
Paul Mountjoy is a Virginia based writer and psychotherapist
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