Fibromyalgia is a medical condition characterized by chronic widespread pain and a heightened pain response to pressure. Most people believe that Fibromyalgia is rare; however, it is estimated to impact more than 5 million citizens of the United States alone. It is dominantly found in women more than men with 80% of reported cases being those of women. It usually onsets in middle age even though it is a long-term disorder. Diagnosing a patient with Fibromyalgia may take time but it is very possible considering there are more than 4,000 published studies.
Sufferers of Fibromyalgia have many symptoms that impact many different parts of the body. The central nervous system (CNS) in someone with the condition interprets and evaluates stimuli response
Fibromyalgia (FM) affects approximately 2-6 percent of the population. FM can affect anyone of any age, but it is more common in women over 50 years old. It’s a very complex disease and the cause is unknown. People who suffer from FM report symptoms which include pain, fatigue, and trouble sleeping and morning stiffness. These symptoms can interfere with a person’s daily life and can ultimately lead to physical disability which could possibly result in depression. The management of FM does not cure the disease and some may not be suitable for all patients so many patients decide to self-manage.
Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) is a musculoskeletal illness (which causes chronic pain) and a chronic fatigue disorder. It can also change sleep patterns and cause the following: digestive disorders, chronic headaches, painful menstrual periods, temperature sensitivity, morning stiffness, numbness or tingling of extremities, and even cognitive memory problems. The name fibromyalgia comes from "fibro" in Latin meaning tissue, "my" in Greek meaning muscle, and "algia" (also Greek) meaning pain.(source 5)
A. NF is caused by a mutation in the NF1 gene, which creates the protein neurofibromin.
Every year, about 9,000 women suffering from this condition are younger than 45 years. Less than half of these women were aware that this was the leading cause of death. 96% of women have prodromal symptoms such as unusual fatigue, sleep disturbances, shortness of breath, generalized pain/ discomfort, back pain, epigastric pain, dizziness, and frequent ingestion. Early recognition, diagnosis, and treatment are crucial for positive outcomes.
Fibromyalgia is not a new disease that has just surfaced, it has been around for a long time, it just didn’t have a name and was not recognized for what it truly was. It was...
Everything started off as expected and I felt as though I had finally found my true calling in life. Then it happened. My doctor’s appointment was scheduled the first week of class, and I was anxious to finally get the much anticipated answers to the source or cause of my pain. But the news I received left me dumbfounded. My body went numb, comparable to being thrown into a sea of ice where I had no time to react. Frozen in time, the doctor’s words drifting in mid-air, my mind would not accept these words so instead I was left watching them as if they were solid masses in front of my eyes. Fibromyalgia—a disease that doctors are still studying and many know little about. How could this happen? How did I get this disease? All these questions raced through my mind. When the doctor had no reply, the questions derailed from their thoughtful track and c...
Overall, there is an immense amount of research dedicated to understanding the psychobiological causes of phantom pain. A prevalent commonality between the literatures reviewed, suggested that symptoms of phantom pain are a neuro-psychobiological experience rather than a psychological disorder. This was evident by peripheral and central factors that associate the cause of phantom pain with the disruption of sensory nerve impulses due to the damage of sensory nerve fibers after amputation. As well as studies that demonstrated a positive correlation between progressive neuroplastic changes in the cortical reorganisation of the topographical structure in somatosensory cortex and worsening phantom limb pain, inferring that cortical reorganisation mediates the extent of pain experienced.
The development of Fibromyalgia and depression in one’s life is dependent on many factors. Firstly, depression can result from issues such as reacting to loss, struggles of life or personal issues related to self-esteem. Fibromyalgia can also result from similar issues as well. However, statistics show that this disorder is common in women than in men (Schmidt et al, 2010). This disorder has been linked to
After meeting with our patient twice, I believe we have set into place a relationship where the patient is very open to us about her health. This is helpful for my partner and I as an open and honest patient is beneficial as we assist them in their health. Goals for next semester include reducing our patient’s blood sugar as well as reducing our patient’s fibromyalgia pain. Our patient has expressed to us that her glucose is high but she is ok with the high number as long as she is feeling relatively healthy. We hope to give practical ways to reduce blood sugar throughout next semester so hopefully we can reduce that number by semester’s end. Our patient is going to see her physician soon, so we hope to get an update on the patient’s fibromyalgia
Neuropathic pain is a frequent complication of pathological conditions such as AIDS, stroke, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and shingles (Campbell & Meyer, 2006). Neuropathic pain can arise spontaneously or by mild stimuli that are common to everyday experience like gentle touch, warm and cool temperatures, and pressure of clothing (Campbell & Meyer, 2006). Patients often describe their experience as lancinating or continuous burning pain. Much present research is being devoted to better understand the mechanisms of neuropathic pain due to its debilitating effect. Both central and peripheral pain related factors have been associated with neuropathic pain, and it is possible that any one of these factors, or a combination, contribute to the symptomatology of patients experiencing neuropathic pain (Campbell & Meyer, 2006). Peripheral effects include ectopic and spontaneous discharge, alterations in ion channel expression, collateral sprouting of primary afferent neurons, sprouting of sympathetic neurons into the dorsal root ganglion, and nociceptor sensitization (Campbell & Meyer, 2006). Central effects include central sensitization, spinal reorganization, cortical reorganization, and changes in inhibitory pathways (Campbell & Meyer, 2006). In addition, the mechanism of nociceptor sensitization in neuropathic pain can be divided into the
Chronic pain is long lasting and does not go away when the tissue injury is healed. It has the possibility of even spreading beyond the original site of the injury. The underlying mechanism is not very well understood. It is essential to understand normal pain processing in order to understand the pathology in more detail. Normal pain processing involves receptors, nerve fibers and action potentials which help to carry the pain stimuli’s from the site of injury, up the afferent nerve, to the dorsal root ganglion which then relays the stimulus to the brain (Benoliel et al, 2012).
Migraines are not as common as many believe, actually, only about 12 percent of the U.S population gets migraines (Reinald Shyti, Boukje de Vries, Arn van den Maagdenberg, 2011). The recurring headache can range anywhere from moderate to severe. There are four stages of symptoms starting with Prodrome symptoms which occur one to two days before a migraine attack. Prodrome symptoms include constipation, mood changes, food cravings, neck stiffness, increased thirst and urination, and frequent yawning. The second stage is Aura which lasts for about 20 to 60 minutes and may occur before or during a migraine. Symptoms of the Aura stage include flashes of light, vision loss, pins and needles sensation in arm or leg, numbness or weakness on face or one side of the body, speech difficulty, hearing noise or music, and uncontrollable jerking. The third stage is the Attack stage that can lasts 72 hours if not treated. Symptoms of the attack stage include pain on one side or both sides of the head, pain that feels throbbing or pulsing, extreme sensitivity to light and sound, nausea, vomiting, blurred vision, and lightheadedness sometimes followed by fainting. The last stage is Post-dromed symptoms which occur after a migraine.
The symptoms of somatic symptom disorder can often be hard to notice because it is psychological and many times the pain they express may seem legit. Many people with the somatization pattern of the somatic symptom disorder will experience many long-lasting physical ailments, and these ailments typically have little to no physical basis (Comer, 2014). These people will usually go from doctor to doctor, hospital to hospital just to find some relief or even answers...
Uterine Fibroids is a common medical condition that occurs generally in women in reproductive age. Fibroids are considered as benign tumors that grow up in the muscular wall of the uterus. Fibroids are also called leiomyoma or myoma. The size of the fibroids may vary from small sizes (apricot seed) to large sizes (similar to a melon). When fibroids rise up to a large size “The uterus expands to make it look approximating to a 6 or 7 months of pregnancy”. (Gynecologists). They also can grow up as an abnormal whole unit attach to the uterus or develop similar to grapes in different areas around the uterus. (See figure 1)
Pain is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage" (1). When pain is described in these terms we can see that pain is a perception, sort of like seeing and hearing. When pain is processed there are a number of brain structures activated, commonly referred to as the "central pain matrix" (2). It may seem irrelevant to delve into pain signal activation in the brain since it is seemi...