The latest research points to changes in the brain's chemical makeup that increase sensitivity to pain as a possible cause of fibromyalgia symptoms.
About 5 million Americans, most of whom are women, live with fibromyalgia. And while the root causes of the disorder haven't yet been clearly identified, research has turned up some differences in how people with fibromyalgia experience pain — which may help to shed light on who is more likely to develop it.
Fibromyalgia symptoms are rooted in a dysfunction in the way pain is processed in the brain. "Fibromyalgia patients have been shown to have lower levels of brain chemicals that inhibit pain signals, including serotonin and norepinephrine, as well as higher levels of brain chemicals that cause pain signals, including substance P and glutamate," explains rheumatologist Chad S. Boomershine, MD, PhD, assistant professor in the division of rheumatology and immunology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. These chemical imbalances may explain why people with fibromyalgia find changes in temperature, light, and pressure on their skin painful while others do not. To continue with the article please visit: http://www.everydayhealth.com/fibromyalgia/are-you-at-risk.aspx?xid=aol_eh-fibro_1_20120305_&aolcat=AJA&icid=maing-grid7%7Cmaing11%7Cdl29%7Csec1_lnk2%26pLid%3D140954
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