Fibromyalgia patients experience a range of symptoms of varying intensities that increase and decrease over time and often resemble other conditions. For years, because of their complex nature and a lack of research on the condition, many doctors misdiagnosed fibromyalgia symptoms or dismissed them as being in the patient’s head. Even today, it is estimated to take an average of five years for a fibromyalgia patient to get an accurate diagnosis.
There is no laboratory test available to diagnose fibromyalgia. Doctors must rely on patient histories, self-reported symptoms, a physical examination and an accurate manual tender point examination.
To receive a diagnosis of fibromyalgia, a patient must experience widespread pain in all four quadrants of the body for a minimum duration of three months and experience tenderness or pain in at least 11 of the 18 specified tender points when pressure is applied.
Fibromyalgia may affect as much as 3-6 percent of the U.S. population. It is more common in women than in men, but the reasons for this difference are unclear. “There are various theories, depending on which research you're looking at, but nothing absolutely definitive has come forward yet,” says Elisabeth Deffner, executive editor of Fibromyalgia AWARE, a publication of the National Fibromyalgia Association in Anaheim, Calif. Researchers are examining hormones, immune system differences, brain chemistry and genetics, among other areas, to shed light on the sex differences.
Although the cause of fibromyalgia is currently unknown, many researchers hypothesize that the symptoms result from “central sensitization.” According to this idea, sufferers of fibromyalgia have a heightened sensitivity in the brain to pain signals and as a result, have a lower pain threshold. As time goes on, the brain's pain receptors become conditioned to remember pain and potentially overreact to the brain's chemical signals or neurotransmitters. In other word, people with fibromyalgia may experience pain in stronger ways than others who don't have the condition.
Aside from predominantly affecting women, there are several risk factors for fibromyalgia:
- Age: the condition usually occurs in people between the ages of 20-60 years, although cases have been reported in children and elderly people. Some research studies have noted peaks around age 35.
- Family History: studies have shown that having a relative with fibromyalgia may put you at higher risk for developing the disorder.
- Other Rheumatic Diseases: a person who has other rheumatic diseases including rheumatoid arthritis and lupus may be more likely to develop fibromyalgia than those who do not have a rheumatic disease.
- Stress: although controversial, certain studies suggest that people who have had difficult or stressful past experiences may be at risk of developing fibromyalgia.
“Practitioners must diagnose and treat co-morbidities of fibromyalgia,” said Shanda Shribbs, Executive Director of the National Fibromyalgia Research Association in Salem, Ore. “Untreated restless legs, sleep apnea and upper airway resistance syndrome can have a dramatic impact on sleep and fatigue. Other conditions such as cervical cord compression, irritable bowel syndrome and myofascial pain syndrome are frequent co-morbidities which should be considered and treated when they are present.”
Common medications for treating fibromyalgia pain include analgesics (including NSAIDs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), muscle relaxants and anti-seizure drugs. Medications to ease sleep disturbances include: anti-depressants and short-term use of sleeping pills. Some doctors recommend combining medication with therapy to help patients learn to techniques to cope with stress, which can exacerbate or trigger pain symptoms. Some patients have found relief through alternative treatments including: acupuncture and massage therapy.
May 12 is Fibromyalgia Awareness Day, a national health observance to raise awareness about the condition. For more information about fibromyalgia, you can contact:
- National Fibromyalgia Research Association
Web site: http://www.nfra.net/
Phone: 503-315-7257 - National Fibromyalgia Association
Web site: http://www.fmaware.org/
Phone: 714-921-0150
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Written by: Jennifer Wider, M.D.
© April 24, 2008 Society for Women's Health Research
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1 comments:
I just want to give helpful information for all fibromyalgia sufferers.
Fibromyalgia is a condition where you feel chronic pain in certain parts of your body; it is a muscular pain especially around the joints. There can also be centralized pain felt in the spinal chord, brain, neck shoulders etc. People with fibromyalgia generally complain of pain in the joints, but it actually is the muscles and the tendons around it that cause the pain, it can be excruciating sometimes and can be a continuous throbbing pain. People suffering from Fibromyalgia also show symptoms of depression, sleeplessness, irritable bowel syndrome, stress and many others, which are caused due to the pain.
Rid Fibromyalgia provides a simple process to helps you eliminate all your symptoms of fibromyalgia and enjoy living your life again. This will provides us the best and most effective solutions on how to rid ourselves from pain.
The Rid Fibromyalgia provides an eBook entitled “Heal the Body” that will teach you the best diet that will allow you to eat your way to wellness, it will also document which vitamins and supplements will target and reverse the illness, how to achieve pain relief through acupuncture, what exercises are safe and will work, and what type of medications may make you sicker, and what will work. This eBook takes a step by step approach in showing you how to rid yourself of the pain naturally so that you can take back your life.
We must know the symptoms of this illness. For us to know what would be the approach we will going to apply. Here's Signs and Symptoms of Fibromyalgia and steps to treat it naturally.
We must also be responsible and aware to the things to gain and cope up with this kind of illness. Eating nutritious food with regular exercise would be result to a better life. Here's Basic Tips in Coping Fibromyalgia.
If we say Fibromyalgia Diet, there is no specific recommended diet for fibromyalgia. But a healthy diet rich in vitamins and minerals can certainly help in coping with the illness. Magnesium rich vegetables are recommended for patient's suffering from fibromyalgia. Here's some information for you to help in Fibromyalgia Diet.
We must also think that vitamins are important for Fibromyalgia sufferers. This will give us additional energy and strength to kept a healthy living. But of course, you must be aware that not all vitamins are effective or directly gives you a good result. Find the best vitamins that would easily give a good response if your taking it. The best thing is your healed and keep your body healthy as possible. Here's The Benefit of Vitamins for us to know why vitamins are important for fibromyalgia sufferers.
Also feel free to view this video Fibromyalgia Help. It really gives good information for those who have Fibromyalgia and encourage not to give up because in every pain your getting through has a good solution in the end.
Here's Rid Fibromyalgia, For free info and helpful articles on fighting fibromyalgia.
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