
Fibromyalgia is a body-wide pain with various tender spots accompanied by fatigue and other symptoms. Fibromyalgia is diagnosed after at least three full months of widespread body pain in the joints and muscles with various tender spots. The tender spots must include 11 of 18 predetermined by specialists as those that are always present in the condition. The tender points are those of fibrous tissue. These are usually muscle areas in the buttocks, shoulders, rib cage, neck, chest, thighs, knees and arms near the elbows. It is possible to mistake fibromyalgia symptoms with those of arthritis. However, arthritis carries with it marked disfigurement of joints and swelling in affected areas that fibromyalgia alone does not.