User:BrageeResearch

Bragee ME center in Stockholm, Sweden, is a private and specialized clinic endorsed by the Stockholm County region to help patients with ME/CFS (www.bragee.se, in Swedish). The clinic is a national resource and welcomes patients from all over Sweden. Bragee ME center started in 2018 and has today (February 2022) around 1600 patients with ME/CFS registered at the clinic, all diagnosed according to the Canadian consensus criteria (CCC) and treated according to best clinical practice. The center has around 35 employees within various professions, of whom many with scientific experience (PhDs, Associate professors, and Professors).

The clinic, and many of its staff, have the ambition to contribute scientifically to improve the knowledge of the disease. Collaborative studies are ongoing to which the clinic provide material from patients with ME/CFS, following existing ethical regulations including informed consent. Recently, scientists associated with the clinic published a paper on the potential importance of Intracranial Hypertension, Hypermobility, and Craniocervical Obstructions in Patients With Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome doi: 10.3389/fneur.2020.00828. The clinic aims to explore the potential importance of these abnormalities further, but also contribute to other aspects of the disease, such as improving diagnostic precision and treatment efficiency.

In 2018, representatives of the clinic initiated the research network PIAF (Pain Inflammation And Fatigue) with monthly meetings at which multinational speakers are invited to present their latest findings and hypotheses in relation to ME/CFS (NB. restricted access, invitation needed).

Canadian Consensus Criteria (CCC) - A set of diagnostic criteria used to diagnose ME/CFS, developed by a group of practicing ME/CFS clinicians in 2003. The CCC is often considered to be the most complex criteria, but possibly the most accurate, with the lowest number of patients meeting the criteria. Led to the development of the International Consensus Criteria (ICC) in 2011.

Canadian Consensus Criteria (CCC) - A set of diagnostic criteria used to diagnose ME/CFS, developed by a group of practicing ME/CFS clinicians in 2003. The CCC is often considered to be the most complex criteria, but possibly the most accurate, with the lowest number of patients meeting the criteria. Led to the development of the International Consensus Criteria (ICC) in 2011.

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.