EDS Fact 4 - Disease vs. Syndrome

People seem to think that if you're in pain you have to be sick with something, this is not the case. Many people don't understand the difference between a disease and a syndrome.

The medical definition of disease:

disease /dis·ease/ (dĭ-zēz´) any deviation from or interruption of the normal structure or function of any body part, organ, or system that is manifested by a characteristic set of symptoms and signs and whose etiology, pathology, and prognosis may be known or unknown.

The medical definition of syndrome:

syndrome /syn·drome/ (sin´drōm) a set of symptoms occurring together; the sum of signs of any morbid state; a symptom complex.

Disease in the medical community means that you are not normal in some way. For the majority of people they consider diseases to be curable or at least treatable. A syndrome is a set of symptoms that occur together. EDS is a set of symptoms that are caused by an abnormality. This may or may not actually interrupt the normal functions of your body.

For many of us hypermobility is a big factor. I know that for myself my muscles generally make up for the hyperextensible ligaments, that is until I get tired. That means that for the most part my body functions normally... until it doesn't. There is a difference in the normal structure of our cartilage, but tests for such things are not readily available (I'm not really sure if they are available at all for that matter). Until there is such a test that is readily available it will continue to be hard for us to get a diagnosis.