Fibromyalgia Syndrome is a condition that strikes millions of men and women. Although not a disease process, Fibromyalgia is an often-times debilitating condition with symptoms such as wide-spread pain, and non-restorative sleep, A diagnosis of Fibromyalgia may well accompany a diagnosis of another condition, such as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or auto-immune disorders.
Fibromyalgia is usually diagnosed by Rheumatologists, although any MD can perform the tender-point test used to diagnose it. The tender-point test is often wrongly referred to as a trigger-point test for Fibromyalgia. Trigger points refer to the pain associated with myofascial pain syndrome, not Fibromyalgia.
Physicians are often quick to misdiagnose Fibromyalgia as depression or hypochondria; it is not either condition. People with Fibromyalgia have more Substance P, the neurotransmitter for pain. This causes a decreased pain threshold, which is often disconcerting for the patient, as they have no idea why a small injury, for instance, may produce severe pain.
Proper sleep is imperative for Fibromyalgia treatment, as people with Fibromyalgia syndrome often do not reach stage four sleep. Healing from things like normal small muscle tears, takes place during stage four sleep.
Another common complaint of people with Fibromyalgia is fibrofog, otherwise known as brainfog. Studies suggest that this is caused due to the over-burden on the brain dealing with the constant pain a victim of Fibromyalgia suffers.
Although the Fibromyalgia prognosis isn"t terminal, many people that suffer from it do seem to report that Fibromyalgia progression is common; progressive in terms of people feeling worse. This is an issue of much debate in the Fibromyalgia community.
Many with Fibromyalgia find Fibromyalgia support groups either on the internet or through their Fibromyalgia physician. One such support organization is at http://www.fibrofoglights.org
At this time, there is no Fibromyalgia cure. Yet many are learning to control the associated pain and sleep problems with proper medications and other treatments. You are not alone, and it's not all in your head.
Copyright 2005, All rights reserved
Autor: Patricia Fuller
Patricia Fuller is a freelance writer.
Added: April 11, 2009
Source: http://ezinearticles.com/
2 comments:
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am writing to you from the Pacific Northwest Foundation about a case study that may be of interest to your research into fibromyalgia. While this was not a study undertaken by the Foundation, it was a case with which we have had access to in virtually every detail. This includes the chart notes (with the patient's approval) as well as the observations and insights of the patient's health care provider.
The case involves an adult female who had been disabled for eight years with diagnosed fibromyalgia. Within four months of treatment, she was able to backpack, regularly work a full day and have little or no pain.
As with all our studies, it is our hope to stimulate additional efforts to determine if these results were an aberration or have wider implications. To this end, we wanted to make you aware of the cast study (which can be found online at http://pnf.org/html/fibromyalgia.html), in the hope that it might prove useful as a starting point for research within your organization.
Thanks and kind regards,
Frank Cook
Pacific Northwest Foundation
This is a nice post about fibromyalgia syndrome. All the information you provide about fibromyalgia is valuable. Thanks for sharing this post. Fibromyalgia and Arthritis treatment
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