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Since returning home, some 100,000 veterans from the first Gulf War have reported chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) similar to fibromyalgia, and a new study in The Journal of Pain, published by the American Pain Society, shows that acute exercise can exacerbate the pain but long-term exercise has the opposite outcome and reduces it. Researchers from Middleton Memorial Hospital in Madison, Wis…

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Due to poor understanding of the phenomenon and due to over promotion of various unfunded theories on fibromyalgia, many people have assimilated denatured ideas regarding the disorder. There are many myths and misconceptions surrounding the concept of fibromyalgia and it is very important to separate them from the actual truth.

The most popular myth regarding fibromyalgia suggests that the disorder is purely psychosomatic, denying its physiological nature. In truth, fibromyalgia is a real disorder and people it affects are not hypochondriacs! Although routine medical examinations can’t reveal any traces of physical damage, fibromyalgia is caused by physical dysfunctions. The reason why fibromyalgia can’t be revealed by clinical examinations is that it evolves latently, rarely generating visible symptoms. Computerized tomography can reveal signs of abnormal brain activity in people affected by fibromyalgia, suggesting a pronounced neurological character of the disorder. Although the actual causes of the disorder are still unknown, fibromyalgia has a medical background.

Another common myth regarding fibromyalgia claims that the disorder is very rare. Some people also believe that fibromyalgia is a new disorder that only affects women. These misconceptions are far from the actual truth. Fibromyalgia is a very common disorder, affecting more than 3.7 million people in the United States. Although fibromyalgia predominantly affects the female gender, it can also occur in men. Furthermore, fibromyalgia can occur at any age! Despite the fact that the disorder is mostly common in older adults, fibromyalgia can also occur in children and teenagers.

Also, fibromyalgia is not a new form of disease. It has affected people for centuries and it has drawn the attention of various medical scientists throughout the course of history. Many scientists have studied the manifestations of fibromyalgia and the disorder has been called in many different ways (muscular rheumatism, fibrositis, fibromyositis). In the 80’s, the disorder was named “fibromyalgia” (muscular pain), in order to eliminate the confusion that surrounded the concept.

Yet another common misconception about fibromyalgia suggests that the disorder is unserious. Although fibromyalgia is not life-threatening, in time it can cause serious damage to the entire body. In the absence of an appropriate medical treatment, people affected by the disorder can suffer from insomnia, depression and mental confusion. Without medical treatment, symptoms such as muscular and joint pain can also become very intense. In time, fibromyalgia can even cause disability to the people it affects.

Although there is no specific cure for fibromyalgia, the disorder can be overcome with the help of medical treatments and alternative therapies. A healthy diet and regular physical exercise can also help alleviate the symptoms of fibromyalgia.

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Medterms.com gives the following definition for fibromyalgia:

Fibromyalgia: A syndrome characterized by, stiffness, and tenderness of muscles, tendons, and joints without detectable inflammation. Fibromyalgia does not cause body damage or deformity. However, undue fatigue plagues the large majority of patients with fibromyalgia and are common in fibromyalgia.

It is estimated that over 3% of the population of the United States suffers from fibromyalgia. The condition affects women predominantly (over 80 percent), between the ages of 35 and 55.

This condition has been studied since the early-1800s and was called by a variety of former names, such as muscular rheumatism and fibrositis. In 1976, “Fibromyalgia” was coined to help describe the condition. The term is derived from the Latin word fibra, meaning fiber, myo, meaning muscle, and the Greek word algos, meaning pain.

Characteristically, a person suffering from fibromyalgia will hurt all over, be constantly tired, depressed, anxious, have stiffness and tenderness of muscles, tendons and joints without detectable inflammation and may even have irritable bowel syndrome. These are just some of the symptoms associated with fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia is considered an arthritis-related condition but it is NOT arthritis, as arthritis is a disease of the joints and although fibromyalgia can be just as debilitating as arthritis, they are not the same.

Fortunately, fibromyalgia, although extremely painful, does not lead to joint deformity or damage to the internal organs or muscles like such other diseases as rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus and polymyositis. Unfortunately, there is no known cause or cure.

Current research suggests that fibromyalgia can start from an illness or as a result of some trauma, such as a traffic accident. The progression of fibromyalgia can have a slow onset, with many patients reporting mild symptoms beginning in childhood, such as growing pains. Changes in the weather or an unrelated illness have been known to aggravate symptoms.

Fibromyalgia patients have reported that the following factors can temporarily increased their suffering:

Cold weather, especially when damp
Malnutrition, hunger, or starvation
Physical activity of any kind, including
minor tasks such as writing
Lack of deep sleep
Increase of stress
The consumption of alcohol

Diagnosis of fibromyalgyis is tricky, as it is closely related to other conditions, such as endocrine disorders, arthritis and plymyalgia reheumatia. The American College of Rheumatology has established two criteria for diagnosis:

1. A history of widespread pain lasting more than three months – widespread as in all four quadrants of the body, i.e., both sides and above and below the waist.

2. Tender points – there are 18 designated possible tender points, although a person with the syndrome may feel pain in other areas as well.

There are no blood or x-ray tests to help the physician with their diagnosis and, therefore, said diagnosis is made purely on clinical grounds based on patient history and physical examination. Widespread pain, on both sides of the body above and below the waist and tenderness in at least 11 of the 18 tender points when pressed are two symptoms that confirm the condition of fibromyalgia.

Although there are no specific bloods tests to determine the presence of fibromyalgia, there are blood tests that can exclude other medical conditions that mimic fibromyalgia.

Upon confirmation of the diagnosis of fibromyalgia after all other possible conditions are ruled out, treatment may consist of a variety modalities. Not all patients will respond to these, but here are a few treatment methods that have helped:

Getting regular exercise to help with muscle aches and stiffness – low impact exercises such as swimming, cycling, walking and stationary cross-country skiing machines are excellent exercises as long as you start out slowly. It has been found that exercise regimens performed on an every-other-day basis, in the morning, are most beneficial. Stretching to help allay muscle stiffness and fatigue, as in mild aerobic exercise is also highly recommended.

Avoiding alcohol and caffeine before bedtime can help promote a more restful sleep.

Stress reduction. This may include biofeedback, relaxation tapes, psychological counseling and/or support groups. Some have even found that by modifying environmental factors such as noise, temperature and weather exposure helps.

Medications such as used for depression, in low doses, have helped in treating fibromyalgia.

Acupuncture may also help. According to a study published in the June 2006 edition of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings and presented last year at the 11th World Congress of Pain, acupuncture relieved fatigue and anxiety in fibromyalgia patients for up to seven months after treatment.

Chiropractic care. This treatment is based on the theory that restricted movement in the spine may lead to pain and reduced function. Due to the risks of manipulation be sure to seek out properly trained and licensed practitioners.

Massage Therapy. One of the oldest methods of health care still in practice, massage can reduce your heart rate, relax your muscles, improve range of motion in your joints and increase production of your body’s natural painkillers as well as relieve stress and anxiety.

The future of fibromyalgia therapy is, of course, to find the cause of the condition in order for researchers to develop a test that can help doctors diagnosis fibromyalgia. Until then, fibromyalgia patients can be helped by improved education of fibromyalgia for themselves, families and friends, exercise and medications.

I have had fibromyalgia my whole life, which has gotten worse since the birth of my son almost 3 years ago. I have tried exercising, but if I do too much, I get really sick. I was wondering if there are any other fibromyalgia sufferers out there that have had success with particular exercises and diets. Thank you very much!

Women experience chronic pain longer, more intensely and more often than men, according to a psychologist who works with both men and women dealing with diseases and conditions that leave them suffering. “Chronic pain affects a higher proportion of women than men around the world,” said Jennifer Kelly, PhD, of the Atlanta Center for Behavioral Medicine…

View full post on Fibromyalgia News From Medical News Today

My Mother has fibromyalgia very severely and she has lots of backaches caused by it. She drinks way too many diet cokes, and the more she drinks the more backaches she gets. Could diet cokes be causing her fibromyalgia-caused backaches to flare up? I need to know because her aches keep getting worse. Can you all help me?

Fibromyalgia is a serious disorder of suspected neurological origin manifested by intense, recidivating muscular pain, joint stiffness, pronounced sate of generalized fatigue, sleep disturbances, anxiety, irritability, increased sensitivity to external stimuli and depression. At present, the exact causes and risk factors of the disease are unknown, fibromyalgia still being regarded as an enigma among the medical community.

There is no specific cure for fibromyalgia and the treatments available today are only partially efficient in slowing down the progression of the disease and alleviating its generated symptoms. In addition, due to the lack of conclusive medical data on fibromyalgia and the deceiving character of the symptoms it produces (the symptoms of fibromyalgia have an unspecific, general character, being also produced by a variety of other diseases that aren’t related to fibromyalgia), the disease can be very difficult to diagnose properly. In persons with special conditions (existing or past neuropsychological diseases, pregnant women, etc.), fibromyalgia is even more difficult to diagnose accurately and more important, timely.

Recent medical investigations have revealed the fact that fibromyalgia is often overlooked during pregnancy. According to the results of elaborate medical research conducted by a team of medical scientists from Temple University, the symptoms of fibromyalgia experienced by pregnant women are very often misdiagnosed as regular clinical manifestations of pregnancy. While symptoms such as intense pain, generalized fatigue and pronounced psychological stress generally point to fibromyalgia, their occurrence in pregnant women determine most doctors to think that they are a normal part of pregnancy, not indicators of disease.

In order to accurately distinguish between the early signs of fibromyalgia and the normal clinical manifestations of pregnancy in future mothers, doctors are currently focusing on establishing more reliable criteria of diagnosis, which would completely eliminate the existing confusion between normal indicators of pregnancy and the symptoms of fibromyalgia. Once they will discover efficient methods of identifying the symptoms of fibromyalgia in pregnant women, doctors will focus on reducing the impact of the disease in future mothers.

A very recent medical study has clearly revealed that the symptoms of fibromyalgia are very difficult to detect during pregnancy. However, the same study has concluded that there are ways to detect the presence of fibromyalgia in pregnant women by comparing their symptoms to those of pregnant women in good health. In addition, the researchers claimed that the presence of fibromyalgia in such categories of patients can also be spotted by verifying the patients’ medical history.

The study involved the participation of pregnant women with and without fibromyalgia. The volunteers were between the ages of 29 and 31, pregnant in the third trimester and had no history of premature, complicated birth or abortion. All the subjects who participated in the study had no chronic illnesses other than fibromyalgia and most of them were actually in perfect health. By the end of the study, the conclusions were that the signs of fibromyalgia can be distinguished from the clinical manifestations of pregnancy with already existing methods of diagnosis.

For instance, compared with the group of pregnant women without fibromyalgia, the group with the disease experienced exacerbated pain (perceived through the entire body), states of exhaustion and even states of mental confusion. Although it is extremely difficult to timely and accurately detect the presence of fibromyalgia in pregnant women, the researchers have demonstrated that this task is not impossible. Medical scientists have recently initiated a new series of studies, aiming to discover more effective, reliable methods of diagnosing fibromyalgia during pregnancy.

If you want to find out more information about Fibromyalgia please visit this website http://www.fibromyalgia-info-center.com/. You will also find valuable information about Fibromyalgia treatment and Fibromyalgia diet.

A recent study from researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and University of Michigan provides the first direct evidence of linkage between elevated intrinsic (resting-state) brain connectivity and spontaneous pain intensity in patients with fibromyalgia (FM). This research shows an interaction of multiple brain networks, offering greater understanding of how pain arises…

View full post on Fibromyalgia News From Medical News Today

Fibromyalgia remains difficult to diagnose and treat because the cause of fibromyalgia apparition is unknown and there’s no specific laboratory test to detect it. People with fibromyalgia suffer from chronic pain in multiple parts of the body and “tender points” that hurt in response to even slight pressure.

There are cases when patients might be treated for years for chronic hip pain with no relief and after that to find that they have fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is known as syndrome which involves medical problems, symptoms and signs tending to occur together, but not related to a single identifiable cause like to a disease. The following symptoms are present to patients with fibromyalgia like:pain and fatigue, and also may experience sleep disturbances, morning stiffness, numbness or tingling of the extremities, headaches, restless leg syndrome, painful menstrual periods, memory and cognitive problems. They can have other symptoms too.

Generally in the U.S. from two to four percent of the population suffer from this syndrome. Fibromyalgia is characterized by a chronic pain associated with multiple areas of the body, that is called ‘tender points’ distributed quite frequently in the neck, lower back, and a number of joints, situated in muscle, ligament and tendon areas. People with fibromyalgia have problems with their sleep pattern, have a lot of fatigue, and often uncertainty as to what is causing the problem.

An easily missed diagnosis is fibromyalgia because many times people will develop symptoms gradually, and often they present with a localized area of pain. Generally after an usual treatment the relief may fail. Patients with fibromyalgia have a number of systemic type complaints and problems. Many of patients with fibromyalgia are women of childbearing age, but this is also present at younger and older women, men, and children. The researchers have been trying to tie the syndrome together include problems with how the central nervous system processes pain, physical or emotional trauma, hereditary factors, underlying diseases, and others after the causes of fibromyalgia have been studied.

For diagnose fibromyalgia is difficult because there’s no single test that can be made, there are a number of things that may be going on. In the brain or below the brain level something is going on, and these changes seem to be such that the person perceives pain to a heightened level. The ‘central sensitivity’ theory is supported by some research experiments. There seems that fibromyalgia is not a psychosomatic condition, although many people think of it. They have physical problems, and also have some emotional and related issues. The major factors in this case are more and more suggestions that central sensitivity is altered sensitivity issues.

For fibromyalgia diagnosis has been established two criteria from the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) like: a patient history of widespread pain lasting more than 3 months and the presence of tender points. Usually when the pain affects all quadrants of the body it’s considered to be widespread. There are 18 sites on the body as possible locations for tender points. When a person has at least 11 tender points a fibromyalgia can be diagnosed. Because of the severity of the syndrome numerous treatment options are important. There are many people with fibromyalgia which are perfectly functional and active in life.

A substantial amount of emotional stress may be associated with fibromyalgia. Patients often feel a lot of fatigue because the altered sleep pattern does not allow adequate recovery of the muscular and ligament structures. Also the pain that is felt by patient is very bothersome and frustrating. There are a number of other associations that have been found. Rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, AIDS, or chronic fatigue syndrome are some conditions associated with fibromyalgia.

Sometimes people who have had cervical injuries, as in an automobile or other accident, can develop features of fibromyalgia over time. At these individuals the level of growth hormone secretion is reduced. Also neurochemical changes can be present, like altered levels of noradrenalin and serotonin. Fibromyalgia is an expensive condition because a lot of cost is involved in the medical care by people looking clarity, a clear diagnosis, and solutions. They also lose a lot of workdays and they make a variety of tests without finding nothing wrong.

The treatment is difficult due to complexity of fibromyalgia. Unfortunately patients with fibromyalgia end in specialty clinics such as Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, rheumatology, and quite often in pain clinics. Fibromyalgia is a well-described condition accepted in the medical world.

If you want to find out more information about http://www.fibromyalgia-info-center.com please visit this website. You will also find valuable information about Fibromyalgia symptoms and Fibromyalgia treatment.