Fibromyalgia is described as a condition that is accompanied by musculoskeletal pain on a large scale, coupled with memory lapses, amnesia, and/or fatigue. Patients diagnosed with Fibromyalgia will experience severe back pain.
Fibromyalgia can be triggered by factors such as psychological stress, physical trauma, infection, or surgery. On the other hand, the symptoms of Fibromyalgia may build up increasingly over time without any particular single trigger.
Interestingly, Fibromyalgia is not easily diagnosed and your doctor may have to rule out a few other disorders with similar symptoms to make a correct diagnosis. Here are some of the diseases that can often have similar symptoms to Fibromyalgia.
- Arthritis
The most prevalent type of arthritis is osteoarthritis. This condition is characterized by the degeneration of cartilage, which in turn brings about bone and tissue damage. The resulting pain is exceptionally severe.
Fibromyalgia concentrates on tender points, including the knees and hips, and so does osteoarthritis.
Another reason why these two conditions might be confused is that they both lead to morning stiffness.
- Hypothyroidism
This condition arises when the thyroid gland fails to produce enough hormones due to unusual immune system response. This response makes the production of the thyroid hormone to drop significantly.
When thyroid hormone levels get dangerously low, this may cause pain in the body.
Besides pain, other symptoms are similar to Fibromyalgia, include memory lapses, depression, fatigue, and constipation.
- Lupus
Lupus causes the immune system to attack body tissue, leading to inflammation and pain in the joints and muscles, very much like that of Fibromyalgia patients. Also, patients with either ofthese conditions can experience increased fatigue.
- Polymyalgia Rheumatica
Polymyalgia Rheumatica is the condition that is most likely to be confused with Fibromyalgia. It often appears in patients over 50 years old.
Some of its symptoms include stiffness and pain in the shoulders, neck, and hips; which are all signs also found in Fibromyalgia patients.
Other symptoms found in both disorders include severe headaches and morning stiffness.
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
Chronic Fatigue Syndromeis often linked with severe fatigue that causes patients feel unproductive and exhausted the whole day.
Other symptoms that are similar to Fibromyalgia include memory issues, joint, muscle, and back pain. By ruling out these conditions (and a few others), your doctor will be able to correctly diagnose if you have fibromyalgia.
