edHelper.com
Illnesses

Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 5 to 7
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   8.52

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    bowel, lupus, metabolism, middle-aged, nutritious, swelling, tolerance, ultimate, acknowledge, transmission, achy, caffeine, chiropractic, counseling, deformity, lessen

Print Fibromyalgia
edHelper.com subscriber options:
     Print Fibromyalgia  (font options, pick words for additional puzzles, and more)
     Quickly print reading comprehension
     Print a proofreading activity

Feedback on Fibromyalgia
     Leave your feedback on Fibromyalgia  (use this link if you found an error in the story)

Fibromyalgia
By Jennifer Kenny 		  
1     Valerie did not feel right. She was tired all the time and wasn't sleeping well. Her body was achy. She was especially tender in the back of her neck, lower back, and knees. The first doctor she saw examined her and shrugged off her symptoms. The second doctor ruled out some problems and told her to take it easy; however, he never offered her a diagnosis. Finally, a third doctor really took time with her, analyzed her situation and symptoms, and officially diagnosed Valerie with fibromyalgia.
 
2     What is fibromyalgia? It is a syndrome. Its name comes from the Latin term fibro, meaning fibrous tissue as well as the Greek term myo meaning muscle and algia meaning pain. It is centered on long-term body-wide pain as well as tender points throughout the body. Its cause is not known.
 
3     What are the symptoms of fibromyalgia? Pain is the main symptom. It has been described as deep-aching. It can radiate, gnaw, shoot, or burn. For some, the pain is mild; for some it is severe. There's also pain or tenderness at certain, defined tender points. These points, and there are eighteen identified ones, are on the back of the neck, shoulders, sternum, lower back, hips, shins, elbows, and knees. Patients also describe sleep disturbances, fatigue, body aches, and reduced exercise tolerance.

Paragraphs 4 to 10:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable
Copyright © 2008 edHelper