The latest research has located the source of fibromyalgia, dispelling myths that the illness maybe psychological or imaginary.
excessive sensory nerve fibers around specialized blood vessel structures located in the palms of the hands,” said Dr. Frank L. Rice, President of Intidyn and the senior researcher on the study published in the Journal American Academy of Pain Medicine. “This discovery provides concrete evidence of a fibromyalgia-specific pathology which can now be used for diagnosing the disease, and as a novel starting point for developing more effective therapeutics.”The team used a unique microscopic technology to study small skin biopsies collected from the palms of fibromyalgia patients who were being diagnosed and treated. They found an enormous increase in sensory nerve fibers at specific sites within the blood vessels of the skin. These critical sites are tiny muscular valves known as arteriole-venule (AV) shunts.
Up until this point scientists had thought that these fibers were only responsible for regulating blood flow, and did not play any role in pain sensation, but now they’ve discovered that there is a direct link between these nerves and the widespread body pain that Fibromyalgia sufferers feel. Rice added “We previously thought that these nerve endings were only involved in regulating blood flow at a subconscious level, yet here we had evidences that the blood vessel endings could also contribute to our conscious sense of touch… and also pain,” Rice said. “This mismanaged blood flow could be the source of muscular pain and achiness, and the sense of fatigue which are thought to be due to a build-up of lactic acid and low levels of inflammation fibromyalgia patients. This, in turn, could contribute to the hyperactivity in the brain.”
Unfortunately there are still no relevant therapies offered but thankfully the illness can be truely accepted and hopefully we are closer to finding a solution.
Source: Redorbit
