What Is Fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia or Fibromyalgia Syndrome ( FMS ) is a chronic disease that causes sufferers to experience pain throughout the body. Fibromyalgia can be experienced by anyone, including children. But most sufferers are aged between 30 and 50 years. In addition, women have a higher risk of developing this disease compared to men.


Symptoms of Fibromyalgia
The main symptom of fibromyalgia is pain that spreads throughout the body. This pain can be a burning sensation, such as being stabbed, or dull pain that can continue to be felt for at least 12 weeks.

These indications will take place continuously with severity that may change. Sometimes it can also be accompanied by other symptoms which include:

• The body is very sensitive to pain.
• Stiff muscles.
• Sleeplessness and fatigue. Pain due to fibromyalgia will make it difficult for sufferers to sleep so that it will trigger fatigue.
• Headache.
• Cognitive disorders, such as difficulty concentrating or remembering something.
• Depression .
• Worry.
• Abdominal cramps.
• Irritable bowel syndrome.
• Menstruation is accompanied by severe pain.
• Warm or cold. This symptom occurs because the patient is unable to regulate body temperature.

The severity of fibromyalgia symptoms generally varies with each sufferer. This difference can be triggered by the level of stress experienced by sufferers, the amount of activity carried out by sufferers, and changes in weather.

Are You Know : What Is Dyslexia?

Causes and Risk Factors of Fibromyalgia
The cause behind fibromyalgia is unknown, but experts suspect that there are a number of factors that can trigger this condition. The trigger factors are:

• Age . This condition is generally experienced by people aged 30-50 years.
• Sex . Women have a higher risk of experiencing fibromyalgia than men.
• Abnormal levels of compounds in the central nervous system . These changes can cause central nervous system reactions that are more sensitive to pain signals.
• Heredity factor . The risk of a person experiencing fibromyalgia can increase if you have family members who suffer from the same condition.
• Physical or emotional trauma , such as being injured, having an operation, suffering from a viral infection, or experiencing a traumatic event.
• Chemical compounds in the brain that are not balanced , such as serotonin or dopamine.
• Sleep disturbance . Insomnia sufferers have the potential to have a higher sensitivity to pain.
• Diseases associated with joints, muscles and bones . For example, lupus , rheumatoid arthritis , or osteoarthritis .

Diagnosis of Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is a disease that is difficult to diagnose because its symptoms tend to be similar to other diseases. Special diagnostic procedures for this disease have also not been found.

The doctor will generally ask about the symptoms experienced by the patient before examining the patient's health condition. Some criteria that can generally be used to help diagnose include:

• Patients experience the same symptom severity, at least for 12 weeks.
• The absence of other causes found.
• The patient experiences pain, at least 4 to 6 parts of his body.

The doctor will then recommend a number of examinations that can remove the possibility of other illnesses suffered by the patient before making sure the diagnosis, such as blood tests and X-rays .


Handling of Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is a chronic, incurable condition. The goal of treatment is to relieve symptoms so as not to hinder the sufferers' daily lives.

Handling of fibromyalgia is different for each patient, but generally includes:

• Use of drugs , such as painkillers (paracetamol or tramadol ), antidepressants (such as amitriptyline , fluoxetine , paroxetine, venlafaxine, and duloxetine), and anticonvulsants ( gabapentin ). If needed, doctors can also provide muscle relaxants, sedatives, or sleeping pills to improve the quality of sleep for patients.
• Psychological therapy , for example cognitive behavioral therapy. Counselors can help sufferers to find strategies to deal with stress triggered or triggered this condition.
• Physical therapy to relieve pain , such as relaxation techniques and light exercise or swimming in warm water.

Share this post