Fibromyalgia is a chronic pain disorder that affects approximately 2 percent of the general population in the United States. Women are affected 10 times more frequently than men, but individuals of both genders and all ages, including children and adolescents, have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Through the years, fibromyalgia has evolved from a psychiatric condition to a rheumatologic illness, although its exact cause has still not been determined.
Diagnosis
You may have fibromyalgia if you meet diagnostic criteria established by the American College of Rheumatology in 2010. Widespread and significant pain involving both sides of your body above and below the waist, lasting for at least three months that is not due to another disorder -- fibromyositis, polymyalgia rheumatica or a similar painful condition -- is sufficient to make a diagnosis of fibromyalgia. Until 2010, fibromyalgia could not be confidently diagnosed unless you had a certain number of tender "trigger points" at certain locations on your body, as described in the July 15, 2007, "American Family Physician," but this requirement has been discarded. Fibromyalgia is frequently associated with other symptoms, including anxiety, fatigue, clouded thinking and sleep disturbances, but these symptoms are not required for a diagnosis.
Sleep Disruption
Experts at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, report that people with fibromyalgia often complain of insufficient sleep or experience persistent fatigue despite having slept for a reasonable number of hours. Upon awakening, fibromyalgia patients typically state that they still feel exhausted. If you have fibromyalgia, you may awaken frequently during the night and then have difficulty falling asleep again. It is not unusual to have stiffness in your muscles upon arising from bed, although this usually improves as the day progresses.
Melatonin
Melatonin is a neurohormone produced by your pineal gland, which lies at the base of your brain. When your eyes are stimulated by light, melatonin production decreases. Conversely, the onset of darkness stimulates the secretion of melatonin, which calms and relaxes you and allows you to fall asleep. A 2010 review in "Current Medicinal Chemistry" reports that melatonin is useful for a variety of sleep disorders, including jet lag, age-related insomnia and delayed sleep phase syndrome.
Fibromyalgia Benefits
According to Dr. Joe Elrod, author of "Reversing Fibromyalgia," melatonin can improve sleep for some fibromyalgia patients. An April 2002 "Maturitas" review stated that women with fibromyalgia often have low melatonin levels, and administration of 3 to 5 mg of melatonin two hours before bedtime reduces pain and depression and improves sleep in these individuals. If you want to try melatonin, check with your physician first.
References
- "American Family Physician"; Fibromyalgia; S. Chakrabarty, R. Zoorob; July 2007
- "Arthritis Care and Research"; The American College of Rheumatology Preliminary Diagnostic Criteria for Fibromyalgia and Measurement of Symptom Severity; F. Wolfe, et al.; May 2010
- "Current Medicinal Chemistry"; Clinical Uses of Melatonin: Evaluation of Human Trials; E.J. Sánchez-Barceló, et al.; 2010
- "Reversing Fibromyalgia"; Joe M. Elrod, Ph.D.; 2002
- "Maturitas"; Melatonin Deficiencies in Women; U.D. Rohn, J. Herold; April 2002
