What is Fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia is a chronic neurologic health condition that causes widespread pain and extreme fatigue throughout the body. Fibromyalgia can be confused with arthritis, or joint inflammation as it has similar symptoms. However, Fibromyalgia does not cause inflammation or long-term damage to the joints or the painful areas. This means Fibromyalgia mainly causes soft tissue pain or myofascial pain which myotherapists can treat and manage.
Cause
The exact cause of Fibromyalgia is still unknown but some risk factors include:
- Inflammatory arthritis (for example, rheumatoid arthritis)
- Overactive pain system
- Other autoimmune disorders, e.g. lupus
An illness, such as a virus (or following an illness or infection)
- Pain from an injury or trauma
Symptoms