Fibromyalgia Syndrome

What is Fibromyalgia Syndrome?

Fibromyalgia literally means painful muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Fibromyalgia Syndrome, or FMS, is a condition of pain in the body's soft fibrous tissue. Individuals with FMS often have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and women are more likely to develop FMS than men. Gulf War syndrome shares some symptoms of FMS (as well as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) and perhaps some of its underlying causes. The exact cause FMS is not known, but it may be triggered by stressful events such as accidents, arthritic diseases, viral, fungal, or bacterial infections.

What are the Main Symptoms of FMS?

• Deep muscular pain that may cause shooting, burning, throbbing, or stabbing aches throughout the body. The muscles may twitch, or feel pulled and overworked.
• Pain tends to be worse in the morning
• Fatigue ranging from mild to severe may be present. The fatigue may be a lack of mental clarity (brain fog), drained physical energy, or both.
• Chronic tension or migraine headaches may recur.
• Sleep disorders may interrupt stage 4, deep level sleep.
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) may overlap with FMS. The symptoms of IBS include constipation, diarrhea, abdominal gas, intestinal pain, and nausea
• Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction Syndrome (TMJ or TMD) can produce headaches as well as pain in the muscles and ligaments of the jaw.

Other Symptoms of FMS

• Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)
• Impaired memory
• Irritable bladder
• Swollen extremities
• Numbness and tingling sensations,
• Muscle twitching,
• Skin sensitivities
• Dry eyes and mouth
• Dizziness
• Increased sensitivity to bright lights, loud noises, and odors

Integrative Treatment

The main treatment goals for FMS are to reduce pain and increase the quality of sleep. Therapies include sleep aids, muscle relaxants, medications and supplements to increase brain transmitters that help to decrease aches and improve immune function. Spinal manipulation, trigger point injections of corticosteroids, and stress management therapies such as biofeedback techniques may also be beneficial.

The continually evolving art and science of Integrative Medicine offer renewed hope, as well as practical pain management solutions, for patients living with FMS. As a Pain Management Specialist, Dr. Lawrence Glass has successfully helped numerous patients diagnosed with FMS. He takes a multi-level therapeutic approach to reversing the debilitating symptoms of FMS. This approach has improved the functional capacity and quality of life for many of his patients.