The difference between fibroids and fibromyalgia

GEOFFREY MBUTHIA ENTERTAINMENT SUB-EDITOR

26 March 2022

• Fibroids and Fibromyalgia may share a similarity at the beginning of the name but the aren't the same.

Yesterday Mpasho.co.ke made a mistake. We made the error of saying that fibroids and fibromyalgia were the same disease, with one affecting women and the other affecting men respectively.

After many comments from knowledgeable experts on this fact, we later apologised for the faux pas.

But we do owe our readers an article that will point out the clear differences between the two diseases and mitigate the confusion we might have caused.

Let's begin;

Fibroids

According to www.cdc.gov, Uterine fibroids are the most common noncancerous tumors in women of childbearing age. Fibroids are made of muscle cells and other tissues that grow in and around the wall of the uterus, or womb. The cause of fibroids is unknown. Risk factors include being African-American or being overweight. The symptoms of fibroids include

Heavy or painful periods or bleeding between periods.
Feeling “full” in the lower abdomen.
Urinating often.
Pain during sex.
Lower back pain.
Reproductive problems, such as infertility, multiple miscarriages, or early labor.

But some women will have no symptoms.

Fibromyalgia

According to www.cdc.gov, Fibromyalgia is a condition that causes pain all over the body (also referred to as widespread pain), sleep problems, fatigue, and often emotional and mental distress. People with fibromyalgia may be more sensitive to pain than people without fibromyalgia. This is called abnormal pain perception processing. Fibromyalgia affects about 4 million US adults, about 2% of the adult population. The cause of fibromyalgia is not known, but it can be effectively treated and managed. Signs and symptoms of fibromyalgia?

The most common symptoms of fibromyalgia are