Diagnosing Fibromyalgia

The best time to contact your doctor is immediately upon verifying whether you’ve been suffering from chronic muscle pain and overwhelming fatigue that interferes with everyday life.

Conditions that exhibit symptoms similar to those of fibromyalgia are HIV, hypothyroidism, Lyme disease, degenerative diseases of the spine, and some cancers. Your doctor can perform a series of tests to rule out these other conditions, such as blood tests, X-rays, and biopsies.

According to rules put in place by the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) in 2010, fibromyalgia can be diagnosed by determining whether you experience constant pain on the left and right sides of your body, and above and below the waist for at least three consecutive months.

This test is also part of diagnosing fibromyalgia per the ACR, and involves placing pressure on areas such as between your shoulder blades, the back of your head, and the front of your neck, outer elbows, upper hips, inner knees, and more. If you experience tenderness in at least 11 of the 18 tender spots associated with fibromyalgia, you may be suffering from this condition.