What is the Difference Between Fibromyalgia and Polymyalgia?
Two similar names, fibromyalgia and polymyalgia, can send you down the wrong path when you prepare for a visit. Sorting the names out comes early, before you decide what to describe and to whom.
The short answer: two different conditions
Wikipedia describes polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) as a systemic inflammatory disease characterized by pain or stiffness, usually in the neck, shoulders, upper arms, and hips, but which may occur all over the body. NIAMS states that the cause of fibromyalgia is not known, but studies show that people with the disorder have an increased sensitivity to pain, so they feel pain when others do not. One is described as an inflammatory disease and the other as a disorder of pain sensitivity.
Writing down where and how it hurts
Both descriptions center on pain, so your own record matters. Work through it in this order:
- Mark on a sketch of the body each area that hurts.
- Note whether you feel stiffness, pain, or both.
- Record when it started and whether it changes through the day.
- List the medicines you already use for it.
A clinician has to examine you before anyone can say which condition fits. These notes make that conversation shorter.
Further reading and your first call
The NIAMS fibromyalgia page is the official source for the second description. For general pain background, see the MedlinePlus pain topic page. If you live in Bloomfield, take your sketch and notes to your first call and ask what the office needs.
Who tells them apart
Telling the two conditions apart in your case is your clinician's work.