If you think that you may have fibromyalgia, you should see your doctor. They will ask you about your symptoms, before carrying out a physical examination.

However, diagnosing fibromyalgia can be difficult. There is no specific test that can diagnose the condition, and the symptoms of fibromyalgia can be varied and very similar to those of several other conditions.

Ruling out other conditions

If your doctor thinks that you may have fibromyalgia, they will first have to rule out any other conditions that could be causing your symptoms. These conditions include chronic fatigue syndrome (also known as ME, or myalgic encephalomyelitis), rheumatoid arthritis, and multiple sclerosis (MS).

You may have blood tests, X-rays, plus other scans in order to rule out conditions that have symptoms which are similar to fibromyalgia.

If you are found to have another condition, such as those listed above, it does not necessarily mean that you do not also have fibromyalgia. As fibromyalgia is a complex condition, when making a diagnosis, your doctor will need to take any other symptoms and possible factors into account.

Diagnosing fibromyalgia

Although there is no specific test that can be used to diagnose fibromyalgia, there are two criteria that can be used to confirm the condition, once all other conditions have been ruled out, or considered.

It is likely that you will be diagnosed with fibromyalgia if your symptoms fit within these criteria. The criteria for diagnosing fibromyalgia are:

• that you have had widespread pain for more than three months on both the left and right sides of your body, and above, and below, your waist, and
• that you have pain in at least 11 of the 18 'tender point' sites when they are pressed .

Tender points

The tender points are the areas on your body where your pain is likely to be at its worst. They are places on the body where everyone is most sensitive to pain, so if you have fibromyalgia, these areas will be very painful.

The tender point sites include the back of your neck, above each of your shoulder blades, and the inside of your elbows.