Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Date of Award

Summer 8-2019

Degree Name

Master of Public Health (MPH)

Advisor(s)

Robert Morgan, Phd

Second Advisor

Paula Cuccaro, Phd

Abstract

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a medical condition characterized by chronic pain and tenderness. Individuals with FM may experience burdensome symptoms, which impact their health-related quality of life. Treatment for FM includes pharmacological and non pharmacological practices. Non-pharmacological treatments for FM include dietary management, routine exercise, and physical and mind-body therapies. There is growing evidence that the utilization of mind-body practices is increasing in the United States, but there have been limited investigations done to observe the use of mind-body practices in the FM population. The purpose of this study is to identify predictors of the use of meditation and/or meditative movement in individuals with FM. The secondary aims are to describe the percentage of adults with and without FM that use mind-body practices and compare the demographic traits of people with FM who use meditation versus meditative movement. Using data from the 2017 National Health Interview Survey, descriptive statistics were used to determine the percentage of adults that use mind-body practices between those with FM and those without FM. To compare demographic and medical characteristics of individuals with FM that use meditation, meditative movement, both or neither practices, χ2 tests were performed. Lastly, a multinomial logistic regression model was used to examine predictors of using meditation, meditative movement, neither or both practices. The analyses revealed that people without FM were significantly more likely to use mantra and spiritual meditation, yoga, and tai chi compared to people with FM. Predictors of using mind-body practices include being young, female, and college educated.

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