What is Fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia is a chronic disorder that is characterized by extensive pain as well as stiffness, tenderness of the soft tissue, a feeling of fatigue, and disturbed sleep. The pain occurs mainly in the hands, pelvic girdle, shoulders, back, and neck. The term ‘fibromyalgia’ has been derived from ‘fibro’, which means fibrous tissues like ligaments and tendons, ‘myo’, which means muscles, and ‘algia’, which means pain. In contrast to arthritis, there is no swelling or pain in the joints in people affected by fibromyalgia. Instead, the pain is felt in the soft tissues that occur around the joints, as well as in the organs and skin, all over the body.

The Main Symptoms of Fibromyalgia

As has been touched on above, fibromyalgia marked by a number of tender points in the body and a plethora of symptoms. Given below are some of the main ones:

Pain: The pain involved in fibromyalgia can be intense, and is often described as diffused. The intensity can vary and the pain may migrate to other parts of the body. The pain can also be felt as a shooting or stabbing kind of pain, a deep aching in the muscles, along with twitching and throbbing. A burning, tingling, or numb sensation can also be felt. Some of the factors that exacerbate the pain are: humid or cold weather; mental and physical tiredness; being physically inactive or too much physical activity; stress and anxiety.

Fatigue: Although fatigue is a common complaint these days due to the hectic pace of life most people lead, however the fatigue associated with fibromyalgia is far more intense than a general feeling of tiredness. It is a kind of exhaustion that is wide-ranging, hampering the simplest of day-to-day activities. The person experiencing it feels that every ounce of energy has been sapped from her/him, leaving them unable to function physically as well as mentally.

Disordered Sleep: Many people afflicted with fibromyalgia have sleep problems, which keeps them from having the deep sleep that is restful and restorative that the rest of us enjoy. In fact, studies have shown that fibromyalgia patients have abnormalities during the Stage 4 part of the sleeping cycle. When they sleep, these people experience bursts of brain activity that is akin to being awake, which reduces the amount of deep sleep they get, which is one of the reasons why they feel fatigued.

Some of the Other Symptoms: Apart from the above, the other symptoms can be: migraines and headaches; irritable bladder and bowel; restless legs syndrome; an impairment in concentration and memory; skin rashes; dryness of the mouth and eyes; depression; anxiety; dizziness; problems with vision; Raynaud's Syndrome; and neurological symptoms.

What are the Causes of Fibromyalgia?

Although the inherent causes, or cause, of fibromyalgia are still not understood yet, however new findings are bringing some of the basic mechanisms of this condition to light. Researchers are largely in agreement that fibromyalgia is a malfunctioning of the central processing, with impairment of neurotransmitters and neuroendrocines. In other words, the pain felt by fibromyalgia patients is because of faulty sensory processing in the central nervous system. Various scientific studies have shown multiple abnormalities in the physiological system of fibromyalgia patients, such as: low blood flow levels to the thalamus area of the brain; higher than normal levels of substance P in the patient’s spinal cord; the hypofunction of the HPA axis; abnormalities of the functioning of cytokine; and diminished levels of tryptophan and serotonin.

Other studies have shown that people may be predisposed to fibromyalgia due to hereditary factors. Also, while for some people the onset of fibromyalgia is slow, but, in most cases it is triggered off by an injury or illness, wherein the body undergoes trauma. Thus the injury or illness may activate an underlying physiological impairment that is already there, although hitherto undetected.

Which People are affected by Fibromyalgia?

Women aged from 35 to 55 are the ones that are most affected by fibromyalgia. Although the elderly, children and men can also be affected, it is rare. Fibromyalgia may occur by itself or be associated with some other disease, like rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus.