ArticlePhysiotherapy research international : the journal for researchers and clinicians in physical therapy2026
Effects of Aquatic Physiotherapy on Pain and Sleep Quality in Women With Fibromyalgia: A Pre-Post Study.
Article in Physiotherapy research international : the journal for researchers and clinicians in physical therapy, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
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Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Effects of Aquatic Physiotherapy on Pain and Sleep Quality in Women With Fibromyalgia: A Pre-Post Study.Physiotherapy research international : the journal for researchers and clinicians in physical therapy · 2026Article
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
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Abstract
background and purposeFibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic syndrome characterized by widespread pain, fatigue, sleep disturbances, and reduced quality of life. Non-pharmacological interventions, such as aquatic physiotherapy (AP), have been proposed to alleviate symptoms and improve both physical and psychological outcomes. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of an 8-week AP program on pain intensity and sleep quality in women with FM, and to explore changes in specific sleep dimensions, including latency, duration, efficiency, disturbances, and daytime dysfunction.
methodsThis was a quasi-experimental pre-post study including thirteen women with FM who participated in an 8-week AP program at a school clinic. The program consisted of two 45-min sessions per week in a therapeutic pool heated to 33°C-35°C, including warm-up, aerobic and resistance exercises, and relaxation. Pain was assessed using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and sleep quality using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Measurements were taken before and after the intervention. Data were analyzed to examine within-group changes rather than causal effects.
resultsAP led to significant reductions in pain intensity, from severe to mild-to-moderate (VAS), and improvements in overall sleep quality (PSQI score reduced from 16 to 9), including enhanced sleep latency, duration, efficiency, disturbances, and reduced daytime dysfunction. Participants also reported improvements in functional capacity and psychological well-being. No adverse events related to the intervention were observed. DISCUSSION: Participation in the AP program was associated with reductions in pain and improvements in sleep quality among women with FM. These findings suggest potential benefits linked to the physical and psychosocial effects of aquatic exercise. Despite limitations such as the small size and absence of a control group, AP appears to be a feasible complementary intervention in public health and clinical settings.
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