Anthony Komaroff

Source:bwh.harvard.edu

Anthony L. Komaroff, MD, is an Internal Medicine physician and since 1993, a professor at Harvard Medical School in the United States, holding the title of the Steven P. Simcox, Patrick A. Clifford and James H. Higby Distinguished Professor of Medicine.

He was quoted in a Rolling Stone article in 1987, written by Hillary Johnson, stating that he did not agree the illness was a "yuppie disease", which became the derogatory label that became commonly used later, Yuppie Flu. He is featured in Ryan Prior's documentary, Forgotten Plague.

He served as past President of the Board of Directors of the International Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis from 1991-1992.

Education

• 1963 – 1967, M.D., University of Washington
• 1959 – 1963, A.B., History, Pre-Med, Stanford University

Awards and Honors

• 2001, Rudy Perpich Senior Lectureship Award, presented to a distinguished CFS/FM scientist, physician or healthcare worker awarded by IACFS/ME
• Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American College of Physicians, and the Association for Health Services Research.
• Served on advisory committees for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Surgeon General of the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Institute of Medicine/National Academy of Sciences.
• Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the HHV-6 Foundation.

Medscape Continuing Medicine Education

• 2013, A Case-Based Approach to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome was a Medscape Continuing Medicine Education program co-authored by Dr Lisa Corbin, Dr Anthony Komaroff, Dr Benjamin Natelson, and Dr Peter Rowe.

Articles

• 2015, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Biology, Diagnosis, and Management by Dr Anthony Komaroff

Notable studies

• 2016, CDC Grand Rounds: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome — Advancing Research and Clinical Education. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
• 2015, Findings from a clinical and laboratory database developed for discovery of pathogenic mechanisms in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome. Abstract
• 2015, Distinct plasma immune signatures in ME/CFS are present early in the course of illness FULL TEXT

  "Abstract: Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is an unexplained incapacitating illness that may affect up to 4 million people in the United States alone. There are no validated laboratory tests for diagnosis or management despite global efforts to find biomarkers of disease. We considered the possibility that inability to identify such biomarkers reflected variations in diagnostic criteria and laboratory methods as well as the timing of sample collection during the course of the illness. Accordingly, we leveraged two large, multicenter cohort studies of ME/CFS to assess the relationship of immune signatures with diagnosis, illness duration, and other clinical variables. Controls were frequency-matched on key variables known to affect immune status, including season of sampling and geographic site, in addition to age and sex. We report here distinct alterations in plasma immune signatures early in the course of ME/CFS (n = 52) relative to healthy controls (n = 348) that are not present in subjects with longer duration of illness (n = 246). Analyses based on disease duration revealed that early ME/CFS cases had a prominent activation of both pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines as well as dissociation of intercytokine regulatory networks. We found a stronger correlation of cytokine alterations with illness duration than with measures of illness severity, suggesting that the immunopathology of ME/CFS is not static. These findings have critical implications for discovery of interventional strategies and early diagnosis of ME/CFS."

• 2007, Changes in Functional Status in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Over a Decade: Do Age and Gender Matter?

  "Abstract - Objective: Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) have substantial deficits in functional capacity, but the course of these deficits over time has not often been studied. This study measured functional capacity on three occasions over a decade, in patients with CFS. Methods: The study was a longitudinal cohort study, and employed the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form-36 (SF-36) instrument to assess physical and mental/emotional functional status. Results: Physical function, as reflected in several different scales, improved modestly but significantly over time, particularly for patients aged 18-60 years and for women. Mental/emotional function was not substantially impaired at the outset of the study, and did not change over time. Conclusion: This study found that physical function tended to improve formany patients over time, despite the fact that they were aging. Physical function did not deteriorate with time."

• 2001, Increased Eosinophil Protein X Levels in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

  "Abstract - Chronic fatigue syndrome is a condition of unknown etiology characterized by severe fatigue and accompanied by symptoms including cognitive difficulties, myalgias, and headaches. Studies of this illness have found chronic activation of the immune system, including one reporting elevated levels of eosinophil cationic protein, considered an eosinophil activation marker. The aim of this study was to measure serum levels of eosinophil protein X, a cationic protein not measured previously in this illness. Measurements are reported on serum samples from 29 patients meeting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for chronic fatigue syndrome, and 30 healthy controls of similar age and gender. The median serum eosinophil protein X level in patients was higher than controls: 37.9 vs. 25.3μg/L (p = 0.037). Forty-eight percent of patients versus 23% of controls had levels above the normal range. The marked increase in serum levels of eosinophil protein X in chronic fatigue syndrome patients could reflect eosinophil activation in this illness."

• 1994, Ampligen inhibits human herpesvirus-6 in vitro.

  Abstract: "The recently discovered human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) is being associated with an increasing number of conditions in which there is evidence of immunologic dysfunction. A number of widely available antiviral agents have shown little or no activity against the virus. We found that Ampligen [Poly (1): Poly (C12U), a synthetic, mismatched, double-stranded RNA, has potent, previously unexpected antiviral effects. Cells known to allow replication of HHV-6 were infected with the virus and treated with Ampligen under various conditions. When cells were pretreated with Ampligen (concentrations of 100 or 200 micrograms/ml) prior to infection or treated shortly after infection, viral replication was inhibited by 46-98%. At 100 and 200 micrograms/ml, Ampligen also inhibited the DNA polymerase activity of HHV-6 by 42-98%. When lower concentrations of Ampligen (10 and 50 micrograms/ml) were used, only pretreatment of cells, with Ampligen, followed by virus infection and carrying the infected cells with Ampligen, significantly inhibited HHV-6 infection (83.7 and 89.1% respectively). Indirect evidence suggests that Ampligen may inhibit viral attachment to cellular receptors and/or inhibit intracellular maturation of the virus. The above concentrations of Ampligen were not toxic to the cells used in the study. Given these in vitro findings, and the low frequency of toxicity reported with the use of Ampligen, clinical trials of this drug in patients with evidence of reactivated HHV-6 infection would seem to be warranted."

• 1992, A chronic illness characterized by fatigue, neurologic and immunologic disorders, and active human herpesvirus type 6 infection

Talks & interviews

• 18 Nov 2016, ME/CFS Alert Episode 85 - Dr Anthony Komaroff on ME/CFS Treatment and Research
• 10 Nov 2016, Solve ME/CFS Initiative Webinar with Dr. Anthony Komaroff, "Hot Areas in ME/CFS Research"
• 5 Nov, 2016, "The Latest Research on ME/CFS" Lecture to Massachusetts CFIDS/ME & FM Association
• 16 Feb 2016, CDC Grand Rounds - Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Advancing Research and Clinical Education with Charles Lapp, MD, Elizabeth Unger, PhD, MD, Anthony Komaroff, MD and Avindra Nath, MD
• 2016, Beyond the Data – Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Advancing Research and Clinical Education (NIH Post-Infectious ME/CFS Study)
• 2014, ME/CFS Alert Interviews: Part 1 Part2 Part3 Advice for the Department of Health

Online presence

• PubMed - Anthony Komaroff
• Ask Doctor K - an online medical information column for patients
• LinkedIn

Learn more

• Wikipedia

See also

• Forgotten Plague

National Academy of Medicine (NAM) - An American non-profit, non-governmental organization which provides expert advice to governmental agencies on issues relating to biomedical science, medicine and health. Formerly known as the Institute of Medicine (IOM).

myalgic encephalomyelitis (M.E.) - A disease often marked by neurological symptoms, but fatigue is sometimes a symptom as well. Some diagnostic criteria distinguish it from chronic fatigue syndrome, while other diagnostic criteria consider it to be a synonym for chronic fatigue syndrome. A defining characteristic of ME is post-exertional malaise (PEM), or post-exertional neuroimmune exhaustion (PENE), which is a notable exacerbation of symptoms brought on by small exertions. PEM can last for days or weeks. Symptoms can include cognitive impairments, muscle pain (myalgia), trouble remaining upright (orthostatic intolerance), sleep abnormalities, and gastro-intestinal impairments, among others. An estimated 25% of those suffering from ME are housebound or bedbound. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies ME as a neurological disease.

cytokine any class of immunoregulatory proteins secreted by cells, especially immune cells. Cytokines are small proteins important in cell signaling that modulate the immune system. (Learn more: me-pedia.org)

cytokine any class of immunoregulatory proteins secreted by cells, especially immune cells. Cytokines are small proteins important in cell signaling that modulate the immune system. (Learn more: me-pedia.org)

Short Form 36-Item Health Survey (SF-36) - A 36-item patient-reported questionnaire, used to determine patient health status and quality of life.

etiology The cause of origin, especially of a disease.

cognition Thought processes, including attention, reasoning, and memory.

serum The clear yellowish fluid that remains from blood plasma after clotting factors have been removed by clot formation. (Blood plasma is simply blood that has had its blood cells removed.)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is a U.S. government agency dedicated to epidemiology and public health. It operates under the auspices of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is a U.S. government agency dedicated to epidemiology and public health. It operates under the auspices of the Department of Health and Human Services.