Let's talk about fibromyalgia! 🗒️
You’ve probably heard of this before, but fibromyalgia is a complex chronic condition that remains a controversial diagnosis because of its myriad of nonspecific symptoms, unclear lab findings, and sometimes overlap with different inflammatory and psychiatric conditions. Even doctors can have trouble with parsing through a mix of chronic pain, cognitive disturbances, and mood symptoms with no definitive lab test that sets off a red flag. Ultimately, it is a diagnosis of exclusion defined by widespread musculoskeletal/soft tissue pain and chronic fatigue, which makes it tricky to pin down as a clinical presentation of one specific disease.
Formally, we diagnose fibromyalgia as a combination of the above two symptoms, lasting for at least 3 months, and where another diagnosis (like rheumatoid arthritis, or lupus) wouldn’t also explain the correlated findings. Even though there’s no specific lab marker for fibromyalgia, getting negative tests like a normal blood count, antibody panel, or thyroid labs can help rule out other autoimmune, musculoskeletal, endocrine, etc. conditions on the differential. Once other conditions are squarely ruled out, clinicians can then use the 2010 ACR criteria for fibromyalgia, making the diagnosis with a numerical score from a combination of the Widespread Pain Index and the Symptom Severity Scale questionnaire.
Fibromyalgia can be a debilitating condition to live with, and stressful too, when there’s not one single treatment for the constellation of symptoms it can cause (on top of the need for better public awareness about it)! Treatment goals are directed at decreasing pain, reducing exacerbation of mood symptoms, and increasing quality of life. Some medical therapies we have include SNRI’s like Cymbalta (duloxetine), or TCA’s like Elavil (amitriptyline) that really benefit patients with predominant pain and fatigue, with added help for those with depressive symptoms as well. Depending on severity, for an increased locus of symptom management, muscle relaxants like Flexeril (cyclobenzaprine) or neuropathic pain agents like Neurontin (gabapentin) may be utilized as well. We also consult heavily to pain management or physical rehab teams as well, as many patients benefit from a multimodal approach. In fact, initial treatment guidelines before introducing any medicines to the equation favor the use of low-impact aerobic exercises and cognitive-behavioral therapy in order to tackle both central pain processing and stress management with musculoskeletal condition and mental health.
Fibromyalgia is a very real condition with lasting impact that, historically, has unfortunately gone poorly misunderstood by both patients and providers. Untreated or uncontrolled fibromyalgia is associated with decreased quality of life and disability, and increased social isolation and even suicide. As with so many other conditions I talk about, increased social awareness, patient advocacy, and clinician education is the first step in improving care for all.
Get ready to blossom into a fantastical spring! 🌸🏵🌹
#OffKaiExpo2027 will be held in the San Jose McEnery Convention Center, from April 16th to April 18th!
My frog form is cute and perfect and I'll never redesign it.
My human form on the other hand...I'm re-thinking how I want it to look already and I haven't even got a model outside the customizable ones I've been playing with. Maybe I just adore my frog form too much? 🤔
The dream collab trend is really cute but I don’t really have anyone specific to tag! I just want to meet cool people who make me laugh and want to play games together. 🥰
‼ DEBUT ANNOUNCEMENT‼️
From frog to human, I've taken new form! Come celebrate with new backgrounds, emotes, lore, and more!
📅 - Oct 29th | 8PM EDT / 5PM PDT
♡ + ↻ appreciated!
#Vtuber ✧ #VtuberDebut ✧ #VtuberEN