Fibromyalgia Might Lower Quality of Life

In wake of World Fibromyalgia Day, the Ministry of Health announced that 80 percent of affected patients are women over 30 years old. About 2 percent of the global population suffers from fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia causes pain all over the body, fatigue and sleep problems. Over 60 percent of fibromyalgia patients present depression and anxiety, which increase body pain. Symptoms commonly appear after a traumatic event such as surgery, infection or psychological stress, among others. Sexual, physical or psychological abuse and genetics may put an individual at risk of developing the condition. Despite fibromyalgia being a chronic condition, symptoms tend to occasionally appear and disappear. Fibromyalgia is not considered to be a degenerative disorder.

“Patients report that the pain tends to travel around the body. This type of affection is different from arthritis in which the pain is in the articulations because they are deformed and inflamed,” said Daniela Mendieta, Specialist, Ramon de la Fuente Muniz’s National Institute of Psychiatry (INPRF). Fibromyalgia is considered to be more disabling than arthritis, cardiac diseases and depression, according to the Ministry of Health.    

Those who suffer from this condition are twice as likely to be hospitalized and women with fibromyalgia may experience a lower quality of life. Although it does not put life at risk, there is no cure available for this disease. However, there are medicines that help to control the symptoms and therapy can reduce physical stress. Between 2005 and 2014, the INPRF has attended around 1,000 cases of fibromyalgia and since 2014 the institute has focused on training health professionals on its diagnosis and treatment.

It can be hard to diagnose fibromyalgia as there are no laboratory studies that can detect it, so clinical evaluations are needed to identify this disease. The diagnosis is one of exclusion and requires examination by a rheumatologist. However, myths surrounding fibromyalgia can delay a diagnosis. One of these myths is that this condition does not exist, with many patients reporting being told by health professionals that fibromyalgia is not real but a masked depression, an affective spectrum disorder or brain disease.

“It is advisable to go to someone specialized in rheumatology, who has knowledge of the disease so that, with an attitude of respect, they can validate that the symptoms are real,” according to Mexico’s Ministry of Health.

The World Fibromyalgia Day aims to raise awareness on this disease. This day was established in 1993 to honor the birth of Florence Nightingale, a nurse who suffered from this condition.