Trigger Points
Diagnosing Fibro can be tough. Pain levels differ from Person to Person and that is why you may find your doctor checks for certain Tender Points on the Body.
There are 18 ‘tender points’ to be checked, 9 Pairs tend to be painful when pressed and usually spread pain to other parts of the Body.
The fibromyalgia tender points are symmetrical (9 pairs) and they occur on both sides of the body. The locations are:
- Back of your head
- Front lower sides of your neck
- Top of the shoulders
- Upper back (at shoulder blades)
- Hips
- Upper chest
- Upper buttock
- Inner elbows
- Just above inner knees
These tender points are very small—the size of a penny.
All the points are around joints, but fibromyalgia pain has nothing to do with the joints themselves, but affects the soft tissues of your body, mainly the muscles.
As well as this Assessment, where you need 11 out of the 18 points to show tenderness, you may need to meet other criteria too. These include:
- Having severe pain in 3 to 6 different areas of your Body or milder pain in 7 or more different areas
- Symptoms that have stayed at a similar level for at least 3 months
- No other reason for your symptoms has been found
Understanding the concept of these Tender Points may help you towards a diagnosis.
