IN response to “Helping to Understand Fibromyalgia” in Your Health Tuesday.

Thank you for your article on fibromyalgia. It does put some good points across.

However, I would like to elaborate on one point that was made regarding fibromyalgia affecting more women than men.

I am a man who has fibromyalgia, so I live daily with the pain and fatigue and muscle weakness.

The current received wisdom is that there are more women with the condition than men.

It is my contention though that there could be several reasons why that seems to be the case.

Firstly, men, by and large, are more reluctant to go to see the doctor so a diagnosis is possible.

Secondly, men do not like to complain about pain it is inbred that we should “grin and bear it” or man up and keep going regardless of the pain that we are in.

What is needed is a culture change that sees men going to their doctor and telling them about the pain they are in and seek help.

If this were to happen, then I submit that the figures may be more equal than the 80 per cent of women, 20 per cent of men diagnosed with the condition.

The medical establishment needs to do more research on the condition so that a better understanding of this very painful and debilitating condition.

Much of the literature out there is focussed on fibromyalgia in women, very little is aimed at men.

I do feel that more needs to be done to address this issue.

I am of course glad that articles about fibromyalgia are written but I would like to see more about how men are affected.

Francis Calvert

Bolton