Tender Points and Fibromyalgia Treatment
Tender points are pain points or localized areas of tenderness around joints, but not the joints themselves for patients suffering from fibromyalgia. These tender points hurt when pressed with a finger. Often times, tender points are not the deep areas of pain but they are instead superficial areas seemingly under the surface of the skin such as the area over the elbow or shoulder. Tender points are not the large areas of pain. The actual size of the point of most tenderness is usually very small, about the size of a penny. These areas are much more sensitive than other nearby areas. In fact, pressure on one of the tender points with a finger will cause pain that makes the person flinch or pull back. Tender points are scattered over the neck, back, chest, elbows, hips, buttocks, and knees. The cause of these pressure points is not known just like the cause of fibromyalgia which is also unknown. Even though it would seem these areas might be inflamed, researchers have not found particular signs of inflammation when examining the tissue. What is known is that the locations of tender points are not random. They occur in predictable places on the body. Your doctor can test the painful tender points during an examination. Yet even with tender points, you need to tell your doctor about the exact pain you feel in those areas. You also need to tell the doctor about your other symptoms of fibromyalgia. Although there is no known fibromyalgia treatments, your doctor mays prescribe medications to relieve the pains you feel.