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Diagnosing
Fibromyalgia
In 1990 the American College of Rheumatology established
the following criteria for diagnosing Fibromyalgia:
1. History of widespread pain of at least three months'
duration. Pain must be present in all four quadrants of the
body, that is, on both the left and right side of the body and
above and below the waist. Axial skeletal pain (cervical spine,
anterior chest, thoracic spine, or low back) must also be
present.
2. Pain, and not just tenderness on physical examination
(digital palpation with an approximate force of four kg), in at
least 11 of 18 tender points in muscles, tendons, or bones.
3. Fibromyalgia is much more common in females than in males,
and most often begins in young adulthood. In most cases,
symptoms come on gradually and then slowly increase in intensity.
Further
common factors found in the condition of Fibromyalgia:
Fatigue, poor
circulation to the hands or toes, tension headaches, migraine
headaches, dizziness, tingling and numbness, irritable bowel
(abdominal bloating with alternating diarrhea and constipation),
muscle tremors, bladder spasms, blurred vision.
Over
the past 20 years of clinical
experience, developing and using his Integrative Medicine
disciplines, Dr Brosseau's
has uncovered two of the most common causes or triggering events
resulting in Fibromyalgia:
1- A bad bug (like flu) lingering on long after you think
you have completely gotten over it.
2- A bad fall or an accident that has caused serious pain that has never
completely gone away.
Dr. Brosseau has also
identified five common symptoms found in the majority
of Fibromyalgia cases:
1-Stomach:
You might find that your stomach is in knots or you may
have
stomach cramps or poor digestion (the food feels like it just sits there).
Heartburn and food allergies or sensitivities may also
factor into this condition.
2- Toxic Bowel: You may have gas and bloating
along with
constipation, diarrhea and/or bad breath.
3- Painful Muscles: You will probably have
muscle pain all over your body, top and bottom, front
and back.
4- Magnesium deficiency; You will twitch
often, especially when falling asleep and be extremely
jumpy (like when someone just
touches your shoulder and you jump, maybe even squeal in
surprise) a lot of the time. You may be feeling very tense
and even be experiencing constant anxiety.
5- Low basal temperature: If your basal
temperature is below 97.8 F or 36.6 C.
With over 20 years of
developing and using Integrative Medicine, Dr Brosseau has
been able to achieve substantial improvement for his patients with
Fibromyalgia.
Tender Points of Pain in Fibromyalgia
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