Blood

A number of blood abnormalities have been detected in patients who present with ME/CFS, it is hypothesised that these may result in a number of symptoms that are experienced by patients, though taking steps to address various of these abnormalities has resulted in symptomatic relief for a number of patients, a reliable 'cure' has yet to result from blood work.

Abnormalities
A high proportion of ME/CFS patients have been shown via a Dual Tag Test to have significantly lower blood volume than healthy controls.

Multiple studies have found unusual properties of red blood cells, including issues with deformability. Deformability is the ability of a red blood cell to change shape. This is necessary because some capillaries are narrower than the red blood cells themselves. If red blood cells are not deformable enough, blood flow slows down.

The shape of red blood cells has been found to be unusual in ME/CFS patients in several studies. This can also slow blood flow, as well as change how molecules dock on the surface of a red blood cell. One study found significantly increased quantities of stomatocytes in the blood of CFS patients. Stomatocytes are red blood cells that have lost their concave shape, usually due to a membrane defect.

Both changes in deformability and changes in shape can be related to the way nutrients are or are not being processed in the body. For example, excess cholesterol can change the shape of red blood cells in some conditions by adhering to the outside of the membrane.

While deformability and unusual red blood cell shape can be indicative of ME/CFS, these abnormalities also occur in other conditions. For example, red blood cell deformability is affected in parasitic infections such as malaria, and metabolic disorders such as diabetes; and unusual red blood cell shape is found in several nutritional deficiencies. While unusual shape and decreased deformability may be said to be signs of illness, they are not characteristic of ME/CFS alone.

Symptoms Resulting from Abnormalities
The various forms of Orthostatic intolerance that a number of ME/CFS patients suffer have been linked to under-oxygenation of the brain due to a combination of red blood cell abnormalities and low blood volume. It has also been suggested that blood pressure and other circulatory system abnormalities contribute to this under-oxygenation. However others state that this may be a direct result of the Adrenal system instead.

Proposed Causes for Blood Abnormalities

 * Renal Salt Wasting
 * Adrenal system

Abnormality Treatments and Adjustments

 * Rehydration therapies
 * Sleep adjustments

Learn more

 * Wikipedia - Blood
 * 2015, Dr. David Bell on Low Blood Volume in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (see also Doctor David Bell)