Primer for the public

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) and ME/CFS are names used in different countries for what is believed to be the same disease spectrum. Dr. Nancy Klimas addresses the disease name controversy and diagnosis in a video ME/CFS Diagnosis and Name.

Disease names and acronyms around the world
The United States and Australia usually refer to the disease as CFS. Many European countries, the United Kingdom and Ireland mostly use the ME name. Most countries as well as doctors and researchers worldwide will also use the acronym ME/CFS and a few CFS/ME.

The symptom Chronic fatigue (CF) should not be used in place of the name Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS); this has been a source of confusion of CF the symptom and CFS the disease. CFS is a grossly misnamed disease whereas CF is a symptom of many diseases, illnesses and drug therapies.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME)
Although many similar disease have occurred for centuries, in the 1920s - 1940s there were sporadic outbreaks around the world, of both poliomyelitis, and what Dr. Melvin Ramsay called 'Benign Myalgic Encephalomyelitis' ('benign because it is disabling but not usually fatal). In 1969, the World Health Organisation included "Myalgic Encephalitis' in its 'International Classification of Diseases' (ICD), under the category 'Diseases of the Nervous System', code G93.3.

From ME to CFS
Incline village, Lake Tahoe, NV, USA experienced an outbreak during 1984-1985. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) were sent to investigate. Dr. Anthony Komaroff studied cases from the outbreak and eventually he and a body of clinicians settled on the name "Chronic Fatigue Syndrome". Dr. Komaroff discusses the name emerging in the documentary film Forgotten Plague.

From CFS to 'any unexplained fatigue'
Various groups invented new definitions, that required only 'medically unexplained fatigue' such as Reeves criteria and Oxford criteria. Fatigue is a common symptom in any population, with many different causes. These new definitions allowed some psychiatrists to claim that CFS could be 'cured' through exercise and positive thinking which has been promoted through the PACE trial, and that this 'cure' also applied to people who are severely ill with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis.

SEID name and diagnostic criteria
Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disease (SEID) is a diagnostic criteria proposed by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) in the Institute of Medicine report. This clinical criteria was developed for doctors in the United States to diagnose at 6 months instead of years or even decades. Doctors are encouraged to perform tests prior to six months, such as a Tilt table test or sleep study if symptoms require further investigation. Treating symptoms such as Orthostatic intolerance or a sleep disorder can begin prior to the six months needed to diagnose.

Disease onset, number afflicted, economic impact
ME/CFS usually comes on with a flu-like illness, virus or infection where the patient is left never the same and with varying symptoms and disease severity fluctuating day to day, week to week, month to month, year to year and decade to decade as well as varying symptoms and disease severity among patients.

"An estimated 17-20 million people suffer from ME/CFS worldwide, and 25% of them have a very severe form of it." The 25% of patients who are severely ill are either bed-bound, wheelchair bound, or are housebound or nearly so. The ME/CFS Severely Ill, Big Data Study is focused on this 25%.

All races and cultures are afflicted with ME/CFS. Children and adolescents are also diagnosed.

In the United States, 836,000 - 2.5 million people suffer from ME/CFS. "The total economic costs of ME/CFS are estimated at $17 to $24 billion annually." Some CFS patients can work with Job Accommodations but 1/3 to 1/2 become unemployed and many rely on SSDI/SSI.

Female to male ratio
Like many auto-immune and neuro-immune diseases where mostly women are afflicted, the ME/CFS female/male patient ratio is 6:1. Fibromyalgia has a F/M 7:1 ratio and some ME/CFS patients have this additional diagnosis.

Jennifer Brea gives a WMC Live radio interview addressing F/M auto-immune ratio and the disease at 5:00.

Hallmark symptom

 * Post-exertional malaise (PEM) is the hallmark symptom of ME/CFS. After physical or mental exertion (which for some patients can be a shower or making out a to-do list, others grocery shopping, socializing or reading a news article, while some just walking to the mailbox, getting to the doctor or mentally following a T.V. program) there is a payback which can be delayed 24-48 hours and can last 24 hours or more. The patient will experience even greater fatigue as well as exasperating the flu-like symptoms and body pain.  Every patient experiences different symptoms and symptom severity from different activities and exertion output according to how sick he or she is with the disease.

Core and additional symptoms (see IOM Clinicians Guide)

 * Orthostatic intolerance
 * POTS
 * Cognitive dysfunction
 * Unrefreshing sleep
 * Chronic fatigue
 * Chronic pain
 * Immune Impairment
 * Infection

US Government guides on symptoms

 * The Institute of Medicine report - Clinicians Guide
 * CDC - CFS Symptoms

Other symptoms, comorbids

 * Neurologic impairments - ME: ICC
 * Fibromyalgia, Irritable bowel syndrome, Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ) and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

Expanded lists of symptoms

 * Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Symptoms - The Monster List!


 * What are the symptoms of ME/CFS?

Drugs, treatments and therapies
There are no approved drugs, appropriate treatments or reliable therapies for ME/CFS.

Controversy
Psychiatry has taken an inappropriate lead and treatment path for a biological disease. In the UK, GET and CBT are employed by ME Clinics. Exercise exacerbates symptoms and can further injure patients. Depression and anxiety drugs are utilized usually with poor and even damaging results.

Treating a biological disease as a mental illness is cost effective. The drugs are inexpensive and biomedical research is not pursued. People struck down and disabled with ME/CFS are labeled with a mental health issue; disability insurance having clauses excluding a mental health illness/disease kick in stopping any payment or shortening the payout timeframe.

Charlatans claim they can cure CFS ("There is no cure" ) when in reality they may be able to treat Chronic Fatigue (CF). Some people misdiagnosed and "recovered" from CFS most likely had CF or a bad year or two with Mononucleosis along with a bout or two of Influenza.

Prognosis
In about 40% of people with ME/CFS the condition will improve over time, though recovery rates from the condition are generally quite low (less than 10%). The condition may also take a relapsing/remitting course, so individuals who appear to have recovered, may actually be in remission. For 5-20% of people, the condition is degenerative. Some studies suggest that prognosis is better for those with less severe symptoms, and who developed the condition at a younger age (childhood-young adulthood), though these findings are not consistent. It is clear that few people will return to their pre-illness state of health and functioning.

Working with government to move forward
Advocates met with senate staffers the week of March 16, 2016 and discussed research and drug development by the NIH, the CDC reinstating and increasing funding and education based on IOM recommendations and the HHS funding to develop Centers of Excellence.

Currently used

 * Fukuda criteria (Sometimes referred to as CDC Criteria)
 * Canadian Consensus Criteria (CCC)
 * Oxford criteria
 * International Consensus Criteria (ICC)
 * Reeves criteria (Sometimes called Empirical definition)
 * SEID (Recommended but not adopted.)

Currently not in use

 * Holmes criteria
 * London criteria
 * Nightingale criteria
 * Ramsey definition
 * NIOF

The different criteria used from one doctor to another and researcher to researcher results in confusion for doctors trying to diagnose, poor research and discord between patients, medical professionals and charitable organizations. Adding to the confusion is a clinical criteria will at times be used in research and a research criteria used by a clinician to diagnose. Many US researchers will use Fukuda (using the PEM "option") and CCC in a single research project. The NIH Post-Infectious ME/CFS Study will be using four: SEID, Fukuda, CCC and Reeves. The ME/CFS community want to participate in this study's design.

Current

 * NIH Post-Infectious ME/CFS Study is outlined by Shannon Firth; Editor Dr. Sanjay Gupta in the article "NIH Gears Up for First-Ever Chronic Fatigue Study". An Open Letter from Mary Schweitzer to Dr. Gupta about the study.
 * Dr. Derek Enlander of Mount Sinai, NY has announced a study to prove or disprove exercise as treatment for ME/CFS patients. (Begin at 17:30 of video.)
 * ME/CFS Severely Ill, Big Data Study by the Open Medicine Foundation.

Completed

 * Cytokine research by Mady Hornig and Ian Lipkin show Immune Signatures. Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health (With video)
 * Study finds brain abnormalities in chronic fatigue patients - Stanford ME/CFS Initiative
 * Illness progression in chronic fatigue syndrome: a shifting immune baseline
 * National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases claim to have a biomarker screening test.
 * Institute of Medicine report

Recommended viewing

 * Forgotten Plague is a 2015 US Documentary about an afflicted journalist who investigates the disease and its history and why the CDC has left millions sideline from life; available for streaming and DVD purchase.
 * Invisible Illness - Stories of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is a 2015 Palo Alto Online, US Mini-Doc on Youtube. It shows 3 patients suffering the same disease to varying degrees.
 * The Last Great Medical Cover Up is a 2015 UK short Film on Youtube with several patient interviews.
 * Jennifer Brea is interviewed for the upcoming BRIC Flix on her ME/CFS disease experience and her 2017 documentary film Canary in a Coal Mine at 5:30 and 10:20.

Learn more

 * List of outbreaks
 * Brain imaging
 * Natural killer cell
 * Vagus nerve hypothesis
 * Ampligen
 * Rituximab
 * Patient mental health
 * Karina Hansen

Research

 * 2014 NY Times article by David Tuller with images: Brains of People With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Offer Clues About Disorder

Disputed Therapies

 * PACE trial is a highly controversial study based on GET and CBT as therapies for ME/CFS patients. Patients, caretakers, ME/CFS charities and organizations as well as many clinicians, researchers, and others oppose this study due to outcome switching and other issues. The therapies are not just useless, they are injuring patients. (See Heading: "Drugs, treatments and therapies" and Open Letters)


 * Lightning Process A "therapy" misused for the disease ME/CFS.

History

 * Osler's Web is a book on the early history of CFS.
 * Thirty Years of Disdain picks up on the ME/CFS history where Osler's Web leaves off.
 * List of news articles on ME and CFS
 * Sophia Mirza's life ended due to CFS.

Blogs and Letters

 * ME/CFS is NOT Depression. Lack of energy, not desire.
 * Open Letters Patients, doctors, researchers, advocates, caretakers and other interested parties have been writing!

Other resources

 * VOAT: CFS
 * About.com Health FMS/ME/CFS