Fibromyalgia is a disorder that causes muscle pain and fatigue (feeling tired). People with fibromyalgia have pain and tenderness throughout the body.
People with fibromyalgia may also have other symptoms, such as:
- Trouble sleeping
- Morning stiffness
- Headaches
- Painful menstrual periods
- Tingling or numbness in hands and feet
- Problems with thinking and memory (sometimes called “fibro fog”).
Recent Research
A recent research that was trying to find the cause of pain in fibromyalgia patients has discovered that the pain doesn’t originate in the brain as previously thought. Instead, it comes from the blood vessels in the hand!
Fibromyalgia is a medical condition characterized by chronic widespread pain and a heightened pain response to pressure. It affects millions of people around the world and is treated with antibiotics.
Some doctors say that the condition is caused by psychological issues, but the recent discovery solves many questions about the disease’s origins. The discovery could lead to a future cure which is great news for millions of people.
To solve the mystery, scientists examined the skin cells of a hand of one fibromyalgia patient who had a lack of sensory nerve fibers and lowered pain response.
These fibers were previously thought to regulate the blood flow and had no relation to physical pain, but now scientists found a big number of nerve fibers called arterioles-venule referrals in the hand of the patient and linked them directly to fibromyalgia pain.
The discovery sheds more light on this disease and offers answers on why cold conditions aggravate the patients’ state.
Dr. Frank L. Rice, a neuroscientist that these nerve endings may contribute to our conscious sense of touch.
“This poorly managed blood flow can be the source of discomfort and muscle aches and a sense of fatigue, presumably due to an accumulation of lactic acid and low levels of inflammation in patients with fibromyalgia. This, in turn, can contribute to hyperactivity in the brain,” he says.
The current fibromyalgia hasn’t been successful in most cases. The usually prescribed therapy involves narcotic analgesics, anticonvulsants, and antidepressants, while doctors also advise more sleep and physical activity.
But, now that the elusive cause of fibromyalgia pain has been finally discovered, patients have high hopes of getting a proper cure in the future. “When there is something that does not fit into their understanding, some doctors underestimate their patients and tell them that they are crazy.
The prescription of SSRIs against fibromyalgia is not the answer – it was nothing more than a lobotomy or hysterectomy,” says a scientist involved in the study.
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