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Fibromyalgiaicon-print

Facts and Statistics

  • FMS happens to people all over the world. Researchers estimate between 3.7 to 6 million Americans suffer from fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS).
     
  • Fibromyalgia is considered a syndrome not a disease. A syndrome is a “collection of symptoms” that you can feel but not see.
     
  • The term fibromyalgia is taken from three Latin and Greek words: fibra, which means fibrous tissue (i.e., tendons and ligaments); myos, which means muscles; and algos, which means pain.
     
  • Like other chronic pain disorders, some people also may have symptoms of depression and/or anxiety; however, neither depression nor anxiety is known to cause fibromyalgia.
     
  • Although anyone at any age can have FMS, certain people have a higher risk of getting it. FMS occurs 10 times more often in women than in men. It is most commonly diagnosed in people between the ages of 20 to 50 years old. If one person in a family has FMS, other members of the family are at higher risk of getting it too.
  • It takes an average of five years before a person is accurately diagnosed with FMS.
     
  • About 90% of people suffering from FMS have sleep problems.
     
  • Many experts believe that FMS is caused by a problem in the way pain messages pass through or are processed by the central nervous system (CNS). Because of this, you may have many symptoms that do not necessarily seem related.
     
  • Many healthcare providers use the criteria established by the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) to help them diagnose FMS. These include having widespread pain for at least three months and having at least 11 of 18 specific tender points.
     
  • Symptoms of FMS can include: widespread pain, fatigue, non-restorative sleep, headaches, muscle tension, TMJ pain (jaw pain), sensitivities to noise, light, smells, medicines, and substances such as caffeine, nicotine and alcohol, Raynaud’s phenomenon, restless legs, numbness, tingling, chest wall pain, irritable bowel or bladder, short-term memory and concentration difficulties, morning stiffness, sensation of swelling, and dizziness.
     
  • It is common to have other disorders in addition to FMS. You may have FMS and another central sensitivity syndrome such as chronic fatigue syndrome, migraines or myofascial pain syndrome (MPS).
     
  • Common treatments for FMS include exercise, medication, and cognitive behavioral therapy. You may have one or a combination of these to decrease your FMS symptoms.