Myofascial Pain Syndrome

Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) is a condition that causes musculoskeletal pain in a particular area of the body. Fibromyalgia causes widespread pain and tenderness in the body, as well as fatigue and sleeping difficulties. MPS and fibromyalgia are two separate conditions, but they do share some similarities.

Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) is a common musculoskeletal disorder caused by myofascial trigger points.1 This painful disorder can affect any of the skeletal muscles in the body and the prevalence varies by medical specialty—it accounts for 21% of orthopedic clinic visits, 30% of general medicine visits, and approximately 85% to 93% of pain management clinic visits.2 MPS has become a major cause of time lost from work, resulting in a loss of millions of dollars from the economy.

Etiology

The pathophysiology of MPS is not completely understood. It is currently hypothesized that trigger points, the most common feature of MPS, contain areas of sensitized low-threshold nociceptors (free nerve endings) with dysfunctional motor end plates. These motor end plates connect to a group of sensitized sensory neurons in charge of transmitting pain information from the spinal cord to the brain.

Literature:

• Chandola HC. and Chakraborty A.: Fibromyalgia and Myofascial Pain Syndrome - a Dilemma Indian J Anaesth. 2009 Oct; 53(5): 575–581.
• Fibromyalgia vs. Myofascial Pain Syndrome VeryWell Health 2023
• Fibromyalgia (Myofascial Pain Syndrome) London Pain Clinic
• Myofascial Pain Syndrome vs Fibromyalgia: What’s the Difference? Pain Management & Injury Relief, 2022, Dec.
• Chochowska M, Szostak L, Marcinkowski. J et al.: Differential diagnosis between fibromyalgia syndrome and myofascial pain syndrome J Pre Clin Clin Res. 2015;9(1):82–86