Mark VanNess



Dr Mark VanNess (PhD) is a member of the scientific advisory committee of the Workwell Foundation which specialises in two-day cardiopulmonary exercise testing (2-day CPET) for ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia and other fatiguing conditions.

Background
Mark VanNess obtained a PhD in neuroscience in 1997, and has undertaken postdoctoral study in pharmacology. He has been working with ME/CFS since 1999, and is particularly interested in issues of autonomic dysfunction, and mechanisms that produce post-exertional malaise.

Notable studies

 * Post exertional malaise in women with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome"'Abstract - OBJECTIVE: Postexertional malaise (PEM) is a defining characteristic of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) that remains a source of some controversy. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of an exercise challenge on CFS symptoms from a patient perspective. METHODS: This study included 25 female CFS patients and 23 age-matched sedentary controls. All participants underwent a maximal cardiopulmonary exercise test. Subjects completed a health and well-being survey (SF-36) 7 days postexercise. Subjects also provided, approximately 7 days after testing, written answers to open-ended questions pertaining to physical and cognitive responses to the test and length of recovery. SF-36 data were compared using multivariate analyses. Written questionnaire responses were used to determine recovery time as well as number and type of symptoms experienced. RESULTS: Written questionnaires revealed that within 24 hours of the test, 85% of controls indicated full recovery, in contrast to 0 CFS patients. The remaining 15% of controls recovered within 48 hours of the test. In contrast, only 1 CFS patient recovered within 48 hours. Symptoms reported after the exercise test included fatigue, light-headedness, muscular/joint pain, cognitive dysfunction, headache, nausea, physical weakness, trembling/instability, insomnia, and sore throat/glands. A significant multivariate effect for the SF-36 responses (p < 0.001) indicated lower functioning among the CFS patients, which was most pronounced for items measuring physiological function. CONCLUSIONS:The results of this study suggest that PEM is both a real and an incapacitating condition for women with CFS and that their responses to exercise are distinctively different from those of sedentary controls.'"
 * Exercise capacity and immune function in male and female patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
 * Subclassifying Chronic Fatigue Syndrome through exercise testing (2003)

Clinic location
The Workwell Foundation is based in Ripon, California.

Talks & interviews

 * 2016, 12th International IACFS/ME Biennial Clinical and Research Conference, Emerging Science and Clinical Care, How Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing Informs Pathology and Treatment(Workshop given with Christopher Snell, Ph.D. and Betsy Keller, Ph.D.)
 * 2016, Dr. Mark Van Ness, "Expanding Physical Capability in ME/CFS" Part 1 (of 2)
 * 2016, Dr. Mark Van Ness, "Expanding Physical Capability in ME/CFS" Part 2 (of 2)
 * 2014, Mark VanNess 'Exercise and ME/CFS' at Bristol Watershed. Part One

Online presence

 * PubMed
 * Institution
 * Twitter
 * Facebook
 * Website
 * YouTube

Learn more

 * 2016, Dr VanNess on recent press reports (January)