Psychosomatic Approach to Fibromyalgia Syndrome: Medical, Psychological, and Social Aspects

Abstract

Management of patients who describe chronic pain all over the body, associated with a range of symptoms as sleep disturbance, overwhelming fatigue, alteration in mood, or psychological distress that worsens the quality of life, is often complex and challenging. This syndrome has been named by terms such as “neurasthenia,” “fibrositis,” and “fibromyalgia”. At the present time, fibromyalgia is considered the most common central sensitivity syndrome, affecting over 5% of the population, being often observed in people with rheumatic conditions. While typically presenting in middle-aged women, fibromyalgia can affect both sexes at any age. The causes of fibromyalgia remain unknown. Significant research findings have focused on dysfunction of central pain processing, with defects in the ascending and descending pain pathways leading to increased pain perception. There are two methods used in the diagnosis of fibromyalgia: criteria-based diagnosis and clinical diagnosis. Although fibromyalgia defies definitively efficacious management, much evidence underlies the importance of treating the psychological factors that affect pain management process. The primary purpose of this paper is to provide a psychosomatic approach to fibromyalgia from three points of view of processing: the viewpoint of the medical profession, the position of the psychologist, and finally the way of thinking of people.