Fibromyalgia Demographics

According to the CDC approximately two percent of the US population is affected by fibromyalgia and the ratio of women to men is 7:1. While the syndrome can have onset at any age and can affect either gender, predominately its onset affects women between puberty and menopause.

Fibromyalgia is the third most prevalent rheumatologic disorder in the United States, is more common than rheumatoid arthritis and is classified second to osteoarthritis (AO) as the most commonly diagnosed musculoskeletal illness leading to disability. Yet, despite these staggering figures, physicians get little to no training regarding identification or treatment of any conditions that cause muscle dysfunction.

The average fibromyalgia patient visits more than five physicians or healthcare providers and spends thousands of dollars before a diagnosis is made. You will read many articles on how much fibromyalgia costs the healthcare system. Some, such as me, feel as though such articles blame us for rising healthcare costs. All illness costs healthcare dollars. Rising healthcare costs are not the result of such disorders. It is the lack of knowledge and awareness and misinformation. We suffer many anguishing events before our symptoms are diagnosed.