Mollii Suit and Fibromyalgia (EXOFIB 2)
The Effects of EXOPULSE Mollii Suit on Fibromyalgia Syndrome in Patients With Fibromyalgia (EXOFIB 2): A Sham Controlled Randomized Double-Blind Trial
1 other identifier
interventional
28
1 country
1
Brief Summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to demonstrate the improvement of fibromyalgia syndrome obtained following active stimulation compared to sham, with diminished functional disability and improved health status using Exopulse Molli suit stimulation. The main questions it aims to answer are: Evaluation of pain, fatigue, mood and quality of life changes observed after active stimulation in comparison to sham. Improvement of fibromyalgia syndrome as per the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ) Study subjects will participate in: A randomized sham controlled double-blind trial to demonstrate the improvement of pain, quality of life, fatigue and mood in adult patients with fibromyalgia following a 2-week intervention of "active" versus "sham" Exopulse Mollii suit. A 2-week washout period should be enough to prevent a potential carry over effect. After this phase (phase 1), a second open label phase (phase 2) will be proposed for patients to understand the effects of Exopulse Mollii suit employed for 4 weeks (7 sessions per week) on the studied outcomes.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at below P25 for not_applicable
Started Jan 2024
1 active site
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
Click on a node to explore related trials.
Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
Study Start
First participant enrolled
January 8, 2024
CompletedFirst Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
January 17, 2024
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
January 26, 2024
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
March 24, 2025
CompletedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
May 24, 2025
CompletedSeptember 8, 2025
September 1, 2025
1.2 years
January 17, 2024
September 1, 2025
Conditions
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (1)
Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ)
It is an 11-item scale that assesses health status and functional disability by exploring the impact of fibromyalgia on work, wellbeing, fatigue, sleep, stiffness, anxiety, and depression. FIQ scores can range from 0 to 100, with higher scores reflecting worse health status. Scores could be used to classify fibromyalgia as mild (scores: 0-38), moderate (scores: 39-58), and severe (scores: 59-100)
This to be assessed at baseline, then at week 2, week 4, week 6, week 8 and week 12.
Secondary Outcomes (7)
Brief Pain Inventory (BPI)
This to be assessed at baseline, then at week 2, week 4, week 6, week 8 and week 12.
Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS)
This to be assessed at baseline, then at week 2, week 4, week 6, week 8 and week 12.
Quality of life as per the Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36)
This to be assessed at baseline, then at week 2, week 4, week 6, week 8 and week 12.
Visual Analogue Scale for Pain
This to be assessed at baseline, then at week 2, week 4, week 6, week 8 and week 12.
Visual Analogue Scale for Fatigue
This to be assessed at baseline, then at week 2, week 4, week 6, week 8 and week 12.
- +2 more secondary outcomes
Study Arms (2)
EXOPULSE Mollii Suit Stimulation Active.
ACTIVE COMPARATORThis will be the EXOPULSE Mollii Suit Active Stimulation. Stimulation will go on for 60 minutes while control unit is on for 60 minutes.
EXOPULSE Mollii Suit Stimulation Sham.
SHAM COMPARATORThis will be the EXOPULSE Mollii Suit Sham Stimulation. Stimulation will go on for 1 minute then it turns off while the control unit will remain on for total of 60 minutes
Interventions
We designed a randomized sham controlled double-blind trial to demonstrate the improvement of pain, quality of life, fatigue and mood in adult patients with fibromyalgia following a 2-week intervention of "active" versus "sham" Exopulse Mollii suit. A 2-week washout period should be enough to prevent a potential carry over effect. After this phase (phase 1), a second open label phase (phase 2) will be proposed for patients to understand the effects of Exopulse Mollii suit employed for 4 weeks (7 sessions per week) on the studied outcomes.
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- Patients aged between 18 and 75 years, with a definite diagnosis of fibromyalgia according to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 2010 criteria, set for at least one month.
- Patients should be able to understand verbal instructions.
You may not qualify if:
- Patient with VAS \< 4
- Patient included in another research protocol during the study period
- Patient unable to undergo medical monitor for the study purposes due to geographical or social reasons
- Patient with contraindication to wearing Exopulse Mollii suit (e.g., cardiac stimulator, a ventriculoperitoneal shunt, intrathecal baclofen pump, pregnancy, and/or body mass index above 35 kg/m2)
- Patient with other somatic or psychiatric diagnoses other than anxiety and depression (e.g., arrhythmias, uncontrolled epilepsy, other diseases causing osteoarticular and muscular pain)
- Any change in the pharmacological therapy in the last three months
- Introduction of a medical device other than Exopulse Mollii suit during the study period
- Patient under juridical protection
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
Study Sites (1)
SSMC
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Related Publications (40)
Annemans L, Le Lay K, Taieb C. Societal and patient burden of fibromyalgia syndrome. Pharmacoeconomics. 2009;27(7):547-59. doi: 10.2165/11313650-000000000-00000.
PMID: 19663526BACKGROUNDBengtsson A, Henriksson KG. The muscle in fibromyalgia--a review of Swedish studies. J Rheumatol Suppl. 1989 Nov;19:144-9.
PMID: 2691674BACKGROUNDBocerean C, Dupret E. A validation study of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) in a large sample of French employees. BMC Psychiatry. 2014 Dec 16;14:354. doi: 10.1186/s12888-014-0354-0.
PMID: 25511175BACKGROUNDBurckhardt CS, Clark SR, Bennett RM. The fibromyalgia impact questionnaire: development and validation. J Rheumatol. 1991 May;18(5):728-33.
PMID: 1865419BACKGROUNDBurwinkle T, Robinson JP, Turk DC. Fear of movement: factor structure of the tampa scale of kinesiophobia in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome. J Pain. 2005 Jun;6(6):384-91. doi: 10.1016/j.jpain.2005.01.355.
PMID: 15943960BACKGROUNDBusner J, Targum SD. The clinical global impressions scale: applying a research tool in clinical practice. Psychiatry (Edgmont). 2007 Jul;4(7):28-37.
PMID: 20526405BACKGROUNDCampbell WI, Lewis S. Visual analogue measurement of pain. Ulster Med J. 1990 Oct;59(2):149-54.
PMID: 2278111BACKGROUNDCleeland CS, Ryan KM. Pain assessment: global use of the Brief Pain Inventory. Ann Acad Med Singap. 1994 Mar;23(2):129-38.
PMID: 8080219BACKGROUNDCoskun Benlidayi I. The effectiveness and safety of electrotherapy in the management of fibromyalgia. Rheumatol Int. 2020 Oct;40(10):1571-1580. doi: 10.1007/s00296-020-04618-0. Epub 2020 Jun 10.
PMID: 32524302BACKGROUNDDa Silva TFG, Suda EY, Marçulo CA, Paes FHS, Pinheiro GT. Comparison of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation and hydrotherapy effects on pain, flexibility and quality of life in patients with fibromyalgia [Comparação dos efeitos da estimulação elétrica nervosa transcutânea e da hidroterapia na dor, flexibilidade e qualidade de vida de pacientes com fibromialgia]. Fisioterapia e Pesquisa 2008;15:118-24.
BACKGROUNDDailey DL, Rakel BA, Vance CGT, Liebano RE, Amrit AS, Bush HM, Lee KS, Lee JE, Sluka KA. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation reduces pain, fatigue and hyperalgesia while restoring central inhibition in primary fibromyalgia. Pain. 2013 Nov;154(11):2554-2562. doi: 10.1016/j.pain.2013.07.043. Epub 2013 Jul 27.
PMID: 23900134BACKGROUNDDailey DL, Vance CGT, Rakel BA, Zimmerman MB, Embree J, Merriwether EN, Geasland KM, Chimenti R, Williams JM, Golchha M, Crofford LJ, Sluka KA. Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation Reduces Movement-Evoked Pain and Fatigue: A Randomized, Controlled Trial. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2020 May;72(5):824-836. doi: 10.1002/art.41170. Epub 2020 Mar 18.
PMID: 31738014BACKGROUNDDrewes AM, Andreasen A, Schroder HD, Hogsaa B, Jennum P. Pathology of skeletal muscle in fibromyalgia: a histo-immuno-chemical and ultrastructural study. Br J Rheumatol. 1993 Jun;32(6):479-83. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/32.6.479.
PMID: 8508284BACKGROUNDElvin A, Siosteen AK, Nilsson A, Kosek E. Decreased muscle blood flow in fibromyalgia patients during standardised muscle exercise: a contrast media enhanced colour Doppler study. Eur J Pain. 2006 Feb;10(2):137-44. doi: 10.1016/j.ejpain.2005.02.001.
PMID: 16310717BACKGROUNDFaul F, Erdfelder E, Lang AG, Buchner A. G*Power 3: a flexible statistical power analysis program for the social, behavioral, and biomedical sciences. Behav Res Methods. 2007 May;39(2):175-91. doi: 10.3758/bf03193146.
PMID: 17695343BACKGROUNDFrench DJ, Noël M, Vigneau F, French JA, Cyr CP, Evans RT. [PCS-CF: A French-language, French-Canadian adaptation of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale]. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science. 2005;37:181-192.
BACKGROUNDGhavidel-Parsa B, Bidari A, Amir Maafi A, Ghalebaghi B. The Iceberg Nature of Fibromyalgia Burden: The Clinical and Economic Aspects. Korean J Pain. 2015 Jul;28(3):169-76. doi: 10.3344/kjp.2015.28.3.169. Epub 2015 Jul 1.
PMID: 26175876BACKGROUNDJohnson MI, Claydon LS, Herbison GP, Jones G, Paley CA. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) for fibromyalgia in adults. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017 Oct 9;10(10):CD012172. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD012172.pub2.
PMID: 28990665BACKGROUNDKahl C, Cleland J. Visual Analogue Scale, Numeric Rating Scale and the McGill Pain Quesitonniare: An Overview of Psychometric Properties. Phys Ther. 2005;10:123.
BACKGROUNDKim SK, Kim SH, Lee CK, Lee HS, Lee SH, Park YB, Park HJ, Son MJ, Lee SS. Effect of fibromyalgia syndrome on the health-related quality of life and economic burden in Korea. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2013 Feb;52(2):311-20. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/kes255. Epub 2012 Sep 28.
PMID: 23024016BACKGROUNDMacfarlane GJ, Kronisch C, Dean LE, Atzeni F, Hauser W, Fluss E, Choy E, Kosek E, Amris K, Branco J, Dincer F, Leino-Arjas P, Longley K, McCarthy GM, Makri S, Perrot S, Sarzi-Puttini P, Taylor A, Jones GT. EULAR revised recommendations for the management of fibromyalgia. Ann Rheum Dis. 2017 Feb;76(2):318-328. doi: 10.1136/annrheumdis-2016-209724. Epub 2016 Jul 4.
PMID: 27377815BACKGROUNDMarques AP, Assumpcao A, Matsutani LA, Pereira CA, Lage L. Pain in fibromyalgia and discrimination power of the instruments: Visual Analog Scale, Dolorimetry and the McGill Pain Questionnaire. Acta Reumatol Port. 2008 Jul-Sep;33(3):345-51.
PMID: 18846013BACKGROUNDOkifuji A, Hare BD. Management of fibromyalgia syndrome: review of evidence. Pain Ther. 2013 Dec;2(2):87-104. doi: 10.1007/s40122-013-0016-9. Epub 2013 Sep 21.
PMID: 25135147BACKGROUNDPark JH, Phothimat P, Oates CT, Hernanz-Schulman M, Olsen NJ. Use of P-31 magnetic resonance spectroscopy to detect metabolic abnormalities in muscles of patients with fibromyalgia. Arthritis Rheum. 1998 Mar;41(3):406-13. doi: 10.1002/1529-0131(199803)41:33.0.CO;2-L.
PMID: 9506567BACKGROUNDPerneger TV, Leplege A, Etter JF, Rougemont A. Validation of a French-language version of the MOS 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) in young healthy adults. J Clin Epidemiol. 1995 Aug;48(8):1051-60. doi: 10.1016/0895-4356(94)00227-h.
PMID: 7775992BACKGROUNDPerrot S, Dumont D, Guillemin F, Pouchot J, Coste J; French Group for Quality of Life Research. Quality of life in women with fibromyalgia syndrome: validation of the QIF, the French version of the fibromyalgia impact questionnaire. J Rheumatol. 2003 May;30(5):1054-9.
PMID: 12734906BACKGROUNDQueiroz LP. Worldwide epidemiology of fibromyalgia. Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2013 Aug;17(8):356. doi: 10.1007/s11916-013-0356-5.
PMID: 23801009BACKGROUNDRiachi N, Khazen G, Ahdab R, Jörgen S. Pain reducing properties of the Mollii suit on adults with chronic pain syndromes. J. Neurol. Sci. 2019;405:138-139
BACKGROUNDSchaefer C, Chandran A, Hufstader M, Baik R, McNett M, Goldenberg D, Gerwin R, Zlateva G. The comparative burden of mild, moderate and severe fibromyalgia: results from a cross-sectional survey in the United States. Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2011 Aug 22;9:71. doi: 10.1186/1477-7525-9-71.
PMID: 21859448BACKGROUNDSchmidt-Wilcke T, Clauw DJ. Fibromyalgia: from pathophysiology to therapy. Nat Rev Rheumatol. 2011 Jul 19;7(9):518-27. doi: 10.1038/nrrheum.2011.98.
PMID: 21769128BACKGROUNDSchmidt-Wilcke T, Diers M. New Insights into the Pathophysiology and Treatment of Fibromyalgia. Biomedicines. 2017 May 13;5(2):22. doi: 10.3390/biomedicines5020022.
PMID: 28536365BACKGROUNDSprott H, Rzanny R, Reichenbach JR, Kaiser WA, Hein G, Stein G. 31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy in fibromyalgic muscle. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2000 Oct;39(10):1121-5. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/39.10.1121.
PMID: 11035133BACKGROUNDSteffen TM, Hacker TA, Mollinger L. Age- and gender-related test performance in community-dwelling elderly people: Six-Minute Walk Test, Berg Balance Scale, Timed Up & Go Test, and gait speeds. Phys Ther. 2002 Feb;82(2):128-37. doi: 10.1093/ptj/82.2.128.
PMID: 11856064BACKGROUNDSullivan MJ, Bishop SR, Pivik J. The Pain Catastrophizing Scale: Development and validation. Psychol Assess. 1995;7:524-532.
BACKGROUNDTaylor SJ, Steer M, Ashe SC, Furness PJ, Haywood-Small S, Lawson K. Patients' perspective of the effectiveness and acceptability of pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments of fibromyalgia. Scand J Pain. 2019 Jan 28;19(1):167-181. doi: 10.1515/sjpain-2018-0116.
PMID: 30315738BACKGROUNDWare JE Jr, Snow KK, Kosinski M, Gandek B. SF-36 health survey: manual and interpretation guide. Boston: The Health Institute, New England Medical Center; 1993.
BACKGROUNDWinkelmann A, Perrot S, Schaefer C, Ryan K, Chandran A, Sadosky A, Zlateva G. Impact of fibromyalgia severity on health economic costs: results from a European cross-sectional study. Appl Health Econ Health Policy. 2011 Mar 1;9(2):125-36. doi: 10.2165/11535250-000000000-00000.
PMID: 21332254BACKGROUNDWolfe F, Brahler E, Hinz A, Hauser W. Fibromyalgia prevalence, somatic symptom reporting, and the dimensionality of polysymptomatic distress: results from a survey of the general population. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2013 May;65(5):777-85. doi: 10.1002/acr.21931.
PMID: 23424058BACKGROUNDWolfe F, Walitt BT, Hauser W. What is fibromyalgia, how is it diagnosed, and what does it really mean? Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2014 Jul;66(7):969-71. doi: 10.1002/acr.22207. No abstract available.
PMID: 24127234BACKGROUNDWolfe F, Clauw DJ, Fitzcharles MA, Goldenberg DL, Katz RS, Mease P, Russell AS, Russell IJ, Winfield JB, Yunus MB. The American College of Rheumatology preliminary diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia and measurement of symptom severity. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2010 May;62(5):600-10. doi: 10.1002/acr.20140.
PMID: 20461783BACKGROUND
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- RANDOMIZED
- Masking
- NONE
- Purpose
- SUPPORTIVE CARE
- Intervention Model
- CROSSOVER
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
- PI Title
- Principal Investigator
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
January 17, 2024
First Posted
January 26, 2024
Study Start
January 8, 2024
Primary Completion
March 24, 2025
Study Completion
May 24, 2025
Last Updated
September 8, 2025
Record last verified: 2025-09
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will not share