September 19, 2008, Newsletter Issue #158: What is Fibromyalgia?

Tip of the Week

Fibromyalgia is a chronic pain syndrome characterized by soft muscle and joint pain. There are 18 criteria that physicians use to diagnose fibromyalgia; these have to do with 18 areas of the body that are "trigger points." To make the official diagnosis of fibromyalgia, a patient must have at least 11 trigger points. Fibromyalgia is thought by physicians to be a form of rheumatism, but it does not respond to traditional treatments for rheumatism!.The exact cause of fibromyalgia isn't clearly understood, but researchers have found that there MAY be some association of fibromyalgia with (1) a traumatic emotional experience (2) stress and/or depression, (3) deficiencies in magnesium, phosphate and oxygen in the body. To make it even more complicated, fibromyalgia very often is referred to as "The Terrible Three," referring to fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, and acute dryness in the eyes and throat. If a person has one of these conditions, he/she probably has, or will have, the other two! Universally, the main symptoms of fibromyalgia are pain and stiffness in soft muscle tissue and joints, chronic aching, sleep disturbances, fatigue, stress/anxiety and depression. Unfortunately, there is no cure for fibromyalgia. But patients can be treated for its symptoms by a physician.

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