Fibromyalgia (or fibromyalgia syndrome) is an arthritis-related condition characterized widespread muscle pain and the presence of tender points, or areas of the body that are particularly sensitive to pressure. Other symptoms may include sleep disturbances, severe fatigue, depression and anxiety, cognitive difficulties, headaches, bladder irritability and spasms, irritable bowel syndrome, jaw problems and painful menstruation.
Fibromyalgia affects 3 percent to 6 percent of Americans, mostly women. Its exact cause is not known.
Who gets fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia affects more than 3.7 million Americans, the majority of whom are women between the ages of 40 and 75, but it also affects men, young women and children as well. People with other rheumatic diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus, are at greater risk for fibromyalgia. For example, about 20 to 30 percent of people with rheumatoid arthritis also develop fibromyalgia, although no one knows why.
Fibromyalgia sometimes occurs in more than one member of the same family, but doctors have not verified a hereditary link or common genetic type. Several studies have, however, found a possible link between genetic markers called human leukocyte antigens, or HLAs, and fibromyalgia. This suggests that a gene that predisposes a person to develop fibromyalgia may exist.
Why don’t some people take fibromyalgia seriously?
Unlike diabetes, which can be diagnosed with a simple blood test, fibromyalgia does not show up on lab tests. Unlike rheumatoid arthritis, which can cause joints to become swollen and deformed, fibromyalgia’s effects on the body are invisible. Most people with fibromyalgia don’t look sick. In most cases, the only clue there’s a problem is the person’s complaints of hurting all over or constantly feeling tired. Thus, many people –doctors included – have incorrectly assumed the condition is all in one’s head.
Increasingly, however, that attitude is changing. The more researchers learn about this condition, the more doctors are taking it seriously.
