Similar to when you have a migraine, some people with fibromyalgia will see floaters and flashes in their line of vision. This can be alarming, especially when you know there is no light source nearby that's causing it. It's important to speak with your doctor about these symptoms.
Some people with fibromyalgia wake up with puffiness in their hands and feet or around their eyes. Again, science can't say for sure why. The puffiness is generally believed to be the result of excess fluid, not inflammation. (Some cases of fibromyalgia may involve inflammation, though.)
Key Differences Between MS and Fibromyalgia
MS is an autoimmune disease caused by a problem within the immune system that causes damage to the layer covering the nerves. Fibromyalgia is thought to be caused by abnormal levels of chemicals in the brain.
Fibromyalgia commonly affects orofacial health, presenting with a variety of oral manifestations, including temporomandibular disorder, xerostomia, glossodynia, and dysgeusia.
Fibromyalgia can be associated with ocular symptoms (foreign body sensation, irritation) and visual disturbances (blurred vision), coexisting with dry eye syndrome and reduced corneal sensitivity. Cases of scleritis, including the necrotizing form, accompanying fibromyalgia have been reported.
It's possible for fibromyalgia to be linked to pain in the muscles of the jaw and face (temporomandibular joint disorder) or to myofascial (skeletal muscle) pain in one part of the body. Such occurrences could be considered forms of regional or localized or incomplete fibromyalgia.
"Patients can commonly experience symptoms of eye pain, sensitivity to light, blurred vision and fluctuating visual clarity, difficulty focusing, visual overload and dry eyes," Dr Pellegrino explains.
Other researchers believe fibromyalgia is caused by a lack of deep sleep. It is during stage 4 sleep that muscles recover from the prior day's activity, and the body refreshes itself. Sleep studies show that as people with fibromyalgia enter stage 4 sleep, they become more aroused and stay in a lighter form of sleep.
It means that an MRI may help both with diagnosing fibromyalgia, as well as the identification of the individual patient's unique subtype of the syndrome. This level of detail will potentially help doctors create more customized treatment plans for their fibromyalgia patients.
"Patients report tingling, numbness, crawling sensations and a burning or sunburn type feeling," he reports. "The main skin symptoms you will see on examination are areas of dry, flaky skin, non-specific red rashes, blotchy or mottled skin and bruising."
The symptoms of chronic fibromyalgia include:
Stiffness in extremities, particularly the hands and fingers. Muscle and joint pain or throbbing joints in the fingers, knuckles and wrist. A feeling of “tightness”, tenderness or weakness in hand muscles.
Fibromyalgia is often triggered by an event that causes physical stress or emotional (psychological) stress. Possible triggers include: a serious injury, such as after a car accident. an infection, such as Epstein-Barr virus or Lyme disease.
The drugs amitriptyline, duloxetine, milnacipran and pregabalin can relieve fibromyalgia pain in some people. They may cause side effects such as a dry mouth or nausea. Normal painkillers like ibuprofen or acetaminophen (paracetamol) aren't recommended for the treatment of fibromyalgia.
The most helpful treatment approach for fibromyalgia is a combination of self-care, physical activity and cognitive-behavioral therapy. But medication may also be needed. Many drugs prescribed for fibromyalgia work to turn down “pain volume” in the central nervous system (CNS).
The FM/a ® Test analyzes your immune system's white blood cells for their chemokine and cytokine protein patterns. Those who suffer from fibromyalgia will show an abnormal pattern of these protective proteins.
Extreme sensitivity. Fibromyalgia can make you extremely sensitive to pain all over your body, and you may find that even the slightest touch is painful. If you hurt yourself, such as stubbing your toe, the pain may continue for much longer than it normally would.
Fibromyalgia is commonly associated with ear-related symptoms. Rosenhall et al.7 reported sensorineural deafness and auditory brainstem response abnormalities in 15 and 30% of 168 fibromyalgia patients, respectively, suggesting that fibromyalgia may be associated with the inner ear or with central auditory impairment.
The central feature of fibromyalgia is chronic pain in multiple sites. These sites are the head, each arm, the chest, the abdomen, each leg, the upper back and spine, and the lower back and spine (including the buttocks). The pain may be mild to severe. It may feel like a deep ache, or a stabbing, burning pain.
Several rheumatic diseases can mimic fibromyalgia. These include sero-negative rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, Lyme disease, polymyalgia rheumatica and lupus. They have symptoms of widespread pain along with joint involvement.
Fibromyalgia was formerly classified as an inflammatory musculoskeletal disease but is now considered to be an illness that primarily affects the central nervous system.
A fibromyalgia attack is also known as a flare-up. An attack can come on suddenly and cause mild to severe pain. These attacks may cause aching, burning, throbbing, or stabbing.