Pain from fibromyalgia is real, experts say
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Many people with fibromyalgia—a debilitating pain syndrome that affects 2 to 4 percent of the population—have faced the question of whether the condition is real.
Based on a review of published studies, there is now “overwhelming” evidence that fibromyalgia is real, report two researchers from the University of Michigan Medical School in the journal Current Pain and Headache Reports.
“It is time for us to move past the rhetoric about whether these conditions are real, and take these patients seriously as we endeavor to learn more about the causes and most effective treatments for these disorders,” write Drs. Richard E. Harris and Daniel J. Clauw.
Fibromyalgia is characterized by a lower pain threshold and is associated with genetic factors, they note. It is often misdiagnosed as arthritis or deemed “psychogenic.”
The scientific literature, however, does not support this, Harris and Clauw point out. On the contrary, the data suggest that fibromyalgia and a number of overlapping pain syndromes are characterized in part by enhanced processing of pain by the central nervous system.
This phenomenon can occur in association with certain psychological factors, “but psychological factors are not in any way required” for an individual to develop or maintain this augmented central pain state.
Additional support for the validity of fibromyalgia comes from neuroimaging studies, which have revealed clear differences between individuals with and without fibromyalgia pain.
In addition, researchers recently reported evidence suggesting that genetics may be involved. The finding that fibromyalgia pain responds to drugs such as tricyclics and anticonvulsants that are known to have anti-pain action also supports the validity of the condition.
SOURCE: Current Pain and Headache Reports December 2006.
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