Fibrous connective tissue is where damaged fibres mend themselves together and present as a form of hard lump like ‘knot’. Fibrous connective tissue has very little living cells and is made mainly of complex sugars, water and protein fibres.
Areas in the body that it can affect are joints, tendons and around muscles found in the neck, shoulders, chest, lower back, arms, hips and thighs. It can happen to both sexes but mainly in adults between the ages of 30 and 60, but more predominant in women. Unfortunately not much is known about the cause of Fibrositis, however it is thought that is has something to do with an imbalance of chemicals in the brain or could be an autoimmune disorder. To this day continued research is going on to find out the cause of this debilitating illness. It is thought that the risk of getting this is increased greatly if you suffer with some of these issues:-
Stress
Muscle injury
Sleep disturbance
Continued viral infections
Fatigue
Dampness or cold atmosphere
Pure nutrition
Medical issues such as joint inflammation and rheumatoid arthritis
To help avoid these risk factors it is wise when able to get good and adequate sleep and to exercise using conditioning exercise movements. Read more here.
Heat will also help with aches and pains, regular hot baths or showers, heat pads, whirlpools (beating action of the water,helps to stimulate blood and oxygen into the muscle area). Massage can also help people with this condition also as it helps to elevate muscle tension and increases blood flow to the muscles.
Signs and symptoms of Fibrositis are:-
Weakness
Stiffness
Painful and sudden onset of muscle spasm
Painful muscle areas
Over tiredness
Fatigue
Difficulties with sleep patterns and with staying asleep.
Lumps/nodules that are tender and painful to touch (localised areas)
You can also invest in having a regular massage to help with sleep patterns as massage helps the mind and body to relax. Good quality sleep allows the body to recover and regenerate so is very important to everyone who is troubled with damaged fibres.
Along with preventive measures to help with Fibrositis the treatment is mainly as follows:- Try and stay as active as your body allows, even when in pain and do stretching exercises as this may prove beneficial. Afford caffeine and alcohol as this is proven to interfere with sleep per say. Avoid stress full situations if at all possible.
Medication can be prescribed. For minor discomfort caused aspirin or ibuprofen will help ease symptoms. Cortisone injections may also be prescribed for pain relief.
Research and Bibliography
GOULD, F. (2012) Anatomy,Physiology and Pathology for Complementary Therapists. 3rd Ed. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes Ltd.
NORRIS, M and SIEGFRIED, D. R. (2011) Anatomy & Physiology for Dummies. 2nd Ed. New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.
On Line Health Information (2007-2012) Fibrositis (Online) Available from: www.nmihi.com/f/fibrositis.htm
(Accessed: 23rd August 2015)