Unknown causes of fibromyalgia
- By:groshan fabiola
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.About the author:
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