BIGON Sandbank

Fibromyalgia is a rheumatic syndrome in which there is widespread muscular pain on movement, excessive tiredness and sleep disturbance. There are many other symptoms that can also be attributed to this condition and these include:-depression, migraines, irritable bladder and/or bowel and joint pain and stiffness.

There is often an absence of clinical evidence of active joint disease, for example, Xrays and MRI scans often report that joints and tissues are “normal”, despite sufferers complaining of a good deal of pain and stiffness.

It is thought that approximately 70% of patients are women between the ages of 35 and 55 years of age, however, it may be present in any age group, including th elderly.

Clinical Features

Muscle Abnormalities

Fibromyalgia is caused by a reduction in energy of the muscles, which makes muscle relaxation difficult. It requires at least twice as much energy for muscle relaxation as it does for contraction. Muscular contraction is produced by the release of calcium from small pouches within the muscle cell called reticulum. Problems can arise when the calcium has to be pumped back into the pouches. This requires a lot of energy and the action of an enzyme pump known as the Ca-ATPase. If energy levels are low, the pump cannot move the calcium back into the pouches, and the muscle stays contracted; this produces a chronic painful condition which has some parallels with the muscle spasm of MS.  
Physical exercise, especially aerobic exercise, has been shown to decrease the reported levels of pain and stiffness in sufferers. Furthermore, strengthening and stretching exercise such as Pilates and Yoga have been shown to incredibly beneficial in improving posture and core strength, which can also significantly decrease pain levels.

It has not been explained exactly why exercise decreases pain levels in Fibromyalgia, however, it may be due to the increased blood flow to the muscles during exercise. Exercise  has also been shown to benefit mental health, and can boost endorphins (the body’s feel good chemicals) and opioids (the body’s morphine like pain killing chemicals).

Sleep Disturbance

People with Fibromyalgia have been shown to have low levels of serotonin, a neurotransmitter, which may contribute to depression and sleep disturbance. It may also be responsible for sufferers perception of pain.

Psychological Factors

In addition to depresion, people with Fibromyalgia may also suffer from anxiety and have exaggerated responses to stress. These symtoms may further exacerbate pain levels as they can cause tense muscles spasms and further decrease the likelihood of restful sleep. Sufferers often report that they experience a sort of “brain fog”, where they find it difficult to concentrate and make decisions.

Treatment

Physiotherapy

Physiotherapy can be beneficial in strengthening muscles and increasing blood flow to muscles, joints and the brain. Hydrotherapy can also relieve the pressure on joints and enable the muscles to be strengthened using water resistance. Acupuncture may also help decrease the levels of pain felt by sufferers and may help promote more restful sleep. Other alternative therapies, such as reflexology and homeopathy may also have a role in helping sufferers deal with the many symptoms of Fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia can often be difficult to treat and often multiple treatments are used over a long period with limited success. Many sufferers need the help of antidepressants to help increase serotonin levels in the brain and to help them cope.

Omega oils can be extremely beneficial in improving brain function and this may help Fibromyalgia sufferers. These oils can also improve joint health and this may decrease pain and stiffness. It is important to buy good quality purer omega oils that will provide you with the correct levels of nutrients for example, correct levels of EPA ( Eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid ). An excellent multi vitamin, such as The Glasgow Solution (vitamins that are taken am & pm) developed by leading Glasgow GP Dr Tom Gilhooly, will help the body fight off infection, help protect against illnesses and help the body make the best use of  omega oils supplements. These can be purchased at our online health store at www.bigonhealth.com

Currently, a treatment called LDN (Low Dose Naltrexone) is proving to be beneficial in the treatment of inflammatory conditions such as Fibromyalgia, Psoriasis and neurological conditions such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Glasgow GP Dr Tom Gilhooly, from the Essential Health Clinic, Rutherglen, Glasgow is having some excellent results from prescribing LDN for his patients with these conditions.

How will LDN help this condition?

Dr Tom Gilhooly explains:
“As the mechanism of action of LDN is not totally known, we have to speculate how it could help in this situation. We strongly suspect that LDN increases endorphin production by the body, which in turn reduces the production of nitric oxide. Nitric oxide also known as NO, combines with superoxide OO to produce the damaging molecule peroxynitrite (ONOO). The ONOO is a very unstable molecule which can damage cell membranes and disable enzyme systems. Excessive ONOO production can damage the calcium enzyme pump, reducing the pumping capacity of the muscles which creates the painful contraction of fibromyalgia.

LDN may work in this condition by reducing ONOO production and therefore preventing inhibition of the calcium pump in the muscle cells. I have used LDN in The Essential Health Clinic in several patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia and, as in MS, it can be very effective in some cases. We suspect that it is most effective in those with high levels of ONOO but this has yet to be proven. It certainly seems to improve the pain of the condition in conjunction with several nutrients.

If the research into LDN and fibromyalgia is well designed and shows a definite benefit, we will have yet another condition which LDN will have been shown to help. As in MS, this is a condition with few effective therapeutic options where LDN has the potential to improve the quality of life for a large number of patients worldwide.”