Hello jduck,
Prior to providing your answer, I would like to say that answers
provided on Google Answers are general information, and are not
intended to substitute for informed professional medical advice.
“Can an MRI determine if a person has fibromyalgia?”
According to my research an MRI cannot determine if a person has
fibromyalgia, however Functional MRI scans provide the first objective
proof that Fibromyalgia pain is real.
Below I will provide you with a number of authoritative references so
that you may verify this.
I searched PubMed Central (PMC), which is the U.S. National
Library of Medicine's digital archive of life sciences journal
literature. They present over 80,000 articles from over 100 Journals
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=Pmc
The study “MR Imaging Of Muscle And Tender Points In Fibromyalgia”
concludes that an MRI does not reveal or detect Fibromyalgia.
Here are brief excerpts taken from the abstract of this study.
MR Imaging Of Muscle And Tender Points In Fibromyalgia
Kravis MM, Munk PL, McCain GA, Vellet AD, Levin MF.
Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University
Hospital, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
“Fibromyalgia is a syndrome manifested by chronic, diffuse
musculoskeletal aching and soreness, palpable muscle tender points,
and other symptoms. (..) Skeletal muscle has been postulated as the
end organ in this disease.”
(..)
“This study sought to establish whether magnetic resonance (MR)
imaging could demonstrate any abnormality in these patients. Eighteen
patients were entered in the study, 14 of whom were able to complete
their examinations.”
(..)
“The trapezius and suboccipital regions were imaged in patients who,
clinically, had active fibromyalgia. No abnormalities could be
detected. The authors conclude that the conventional MR imaging used
in this study was unable to depict any primary skeletal muscle
abnormality in fibromyalgia.”
Source:
National Library of Medicine: PubMed
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=8347962&dopt=Abstract
Fibromyalgia affects nearly 6 million Americans and it's one of the
most difficult for doctors to diagnose. According to expert Dr.
Terence Starz of UPMC “the diagnosis fibromyalgia is complex since no
single blood test or MRI can make the diagnosis. Often, just
discovering the problem can be half the battle.”
Source: KDKA article
http://kdka.com/doctors_paul_and_maria/local_story_163162959.html
Dr. Terence Starz MD - Biography
http://newsbureau.upmc.com/Bios/BioStarz.htm
According to the Arthritis Foundation Disease Center, ”there is no
clear-cut test to determine fibromyalgia. No evidence of it appears on
X-rays or in laboratory test results. There is no diagnostic marker in
the blood.”
“Instead fibromyalgia is diagnosed by the identification of symptoms -
the presence of widespread pain in combination with tenderness at
specific locations, and chronic fatigue - and the exclusion of other
conditions.”
Arthritis Foundation
http://www.arthritis.org/conditions/diseasecenter/fibromyalgia_diagnosed.asp
Fibromyalgia: “No blood test or x-ray can detect the disorder. This is
one reason doctors have had difficulty diagnosing the condition over
the years.”
Source: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota
http://blueprint.bluecrossmn.com/topic/fibromyalgia
Although an MRI cannot detect or reveal Fibromyalgia, recent research
has shown that Fibromyalgia pain is visible on brain scans. Functional
MRI scans provide the first objective proof that Fibromyalgia pain is
real as there are higher levels of activity in the areas of the brain
involved in pain perception among Fibromyalgia patients than in
matched controls.
The following articles discuss this recent research.
From a Harvard Health Publication Research Brief:
“Gently squeezing the thumb of a fibromyalgia patient creates
stronger-than-normal pain signals in the brain, according to research
published in the May 2002 issue of Arthritis and Rheumatism.”
This study examined images of patients' brains using fMRI while they
were in pain.
“Researchers used a small piston-like device to apply pressure to the
base of the left thumbnail of 16 FMS patients and 16 people without
FMS (controls).”
“The researchers then used functional magnetic resonance imaging
(fMRI) to scan the subjects' brains. When the fibromyalgia patients
received the amount of pressure they considered painful, blood flow
in-creased in 12 brain regions; the same pressure activated only two
locations in the brains of the control subjects.”
Harvard Health Publication: Research Brief
http://www.health.harvard.edu/medline/Women/W0902b.html
Newsweek Article on Fibromyalgia, May 19, 2003
Fibromyalgia: Not All in Your Head
Thanks to brain-scan technology, this ‘imaginary’ ailment of 6 million
people is proving to be very real
http://fmaware.org/fminfo/newsweekarticleFP.htm
In addition you can download a copy of the study (11 pages) by right
clicking on this link and then "save as" or just clicking on the link.
http://www.med.umich.edu/opm/newspage/2002/Clauw%20paper.pdf.
Search Criteria:
MRI detects Fibromyalgia +resaerch
MRI diagnosis Fibromyalgia +study
MRI reveals Fibromyalgia
Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging + Fibromyalgia
I hope the above information helps you in your research. If anything
is unclear or if a link does not function please let me know and I'll
be glad to offer further assistance.
Best Regards,
Bobbie7-ga |
