List of abbreviations

This is a list of abbreviations commonly used on MEpedia or in relation to ME/CFS. Abbreviations can be shortened versions of words, acronyms or mnemonics of short phrases. They can appear with or without punctuation.

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#

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
2-day CPET	Two-day cardiopulmonary exercise test

A

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
A-msh	Alpha-Melanocyte-stimulating hormone
AA	Arachidonic acid
ACTH	Adrenocorticotropic hormone
AfME	Action for ME
AHCC	Active Hexose Correlated Compound
AHRQ	Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
AIDS	Acquired immune deficiency syndrome
Am Fam Physician.	American Family Physician	Academic journal
Am J Med.	The American Journal of Medicine	Academic journal
Am J Psychiatry	The American Journal of Psychiatry	Academic journal
Am J Psychology	The American Journal of Psychology	Academic journal
AMPK	AMP-activated protein kinase
Am Psychol.	American Psychologist	Academic journal
Ann Epidemiol.	Annals of Epidemiology	Academic journal
Ann Intern Med.	Annals of Internal Medicine	Academic journal
ANZMES	Associated New Zealand ME Society
APPG on ME	All Party Parliamentary Group on ME
APT	Adaptive Pacing Therapy
ATP	Adenosine triphosphate
Aust N Z J Psychiatry	Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry	Academic journal
Autoimmun Rev.	Autoimmunity Reviews	Academic journal
AYME	Association of Young People with ME

B

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
BA	Bachelor of Arts degree
Biopsychosoc Med.	BioPsychoSocial Medicine	Academic journal
BMC Health Serv Res.	BMC Health Services Research	Academic journal
BMJ	British Medical Journal	Academic journal
BMREC / BRMEC	Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium
BPD	Borderline Personality Disorder	A mental disorder
BPS model	Biopsychosocial model	The primary model for mental illnesses
BPSM	BioPsychoSocial Medicine	Academic journal
Br J Nurs.	British Journal of Nursing	Academic journal
Br J Soc Psychol.	British Journal of Social Psychology	Academic journal
Br Med Bull.	British Medical Bulletin	Academic journal
BS or BSc	Bachelor of Science degree

C

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
CAA	CFIDS Association of America	Now known as the Solve ME/CFS Initiative
CBT	Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
CCC	Canadian Consensus Criteria
CDC	Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
CDR	Cell danger response
C. diff	Clostridium difficile
CEBV	Chronic Epstein-Barr virus
CFIDS	Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome
CFS / C.F.S.	Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
CFS/ME	Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis
CFSAC	Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee
CI	Confidence interval	Research term
CMRC	UK CFS/ME Research Collaborative
CMS	Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services
CMV	Cytomegalovirus
CNS	Central nervous system
COPD	Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
CoQ10	Coenzyme Q10
COST	Cooperation In Science And Technology
CPET	Cardiopulmonary exercise test

D

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
DGLA	Dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid
DHA	Docosahexaenoic acid
DHEA	Dehydroepiandrosterone
DNA	Deoxyribonucleic acid
DOI	Digital object identifier	Identifier
DsRNA	Double-stranded RNA viruses
DWP	Department for Work and Pensions	UK social security department
Dyn Med.	Dynamic Medicine	Academic journal

E

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
EBNA	Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen
EBV	Epstein-Barr virus
E. coli	Escherichia coli
EDS	Ehlers Danlos Syndrome
EEG	Electroencephalogram, Electroencephalograph, or Electroencephalography
EPA	Eicosapentaenoic acid
EUROMENE	European ME Network / European Network on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Exerc Immunol Rev.	Exercise immunology review	Academic journal

F

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
FDA	U.S. Food and Drug Administration
FINE	FINE trial	Sister trial to the PACE trial for severe ME/CFS
FIQ	Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire
FIS	Fatigue Impact Scale
Flu / 'Flu	Influenza
FM	Fibromyalgia
FMS	Fibromyalgia or Fibromyalgia Syndrome
FMT	Fecal matter transplant [US]; Faecal matter transplant [UK]
FOI / FOIA	Freedom of information / Freedom of Information Act	UK data access law
FSS	Fatigue Severity Scale
FUT2	Fucosyltransferase 2 enzyme

G

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
GAPS / GAP Syndrome	Gut and Psychology Syndrome
GAT / GAM	Graded Activity Therapy/Graded Activity Management	Alternative name for GET
GET	Graded Exercise Therapy
GP / G.P.	General Practitioner	Primary Doctor (PDOC)
GSRME	Group on Scientific Research into Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Gibson Enquiry
GWI	Gulf War Illness
GWS	Gulf War Syndrome

H

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
H1N1	Influenza A virus subtype H1N1
HCI	Hydrochloric acid
HHS	U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
HHV	Herpesviruses
HHV-6	Human herpesvirus 6
HHV-7	Human herpesvirus 7
HIV	Human immunodeficiency virus
HPA	Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis
HSV	Herpes simplex virus

I

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
IACFS/ME / IACFSME	International Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis
IBS	Irritable Bowel Syndrome
ICC	International Consensus Criteria for M.E.
ICD	International Classification of Diseases	World Health Organization classification of diseases and disorders
ICO	Information Commissioner's Office	UK department overseeing the Freedom of Information Act
IFN / IFN-γ	Interferon / Interferon gamma
Ig	Immunoglobulin
IgA	Immunoglobulin A
IgM	Immunoglobulin M
IiME/IiMER	Invest in ME Research	UK patient charity
IL	Interleukin
IOM	Institute of Medicine
ISBN	International Standard Book Number	Identifier
ISSN	International Standard Serial Number	Identifier
IVIG	Intravenous immunoglobulin

J

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
JAMA	Journal of the American Medical Association	Academic journal
J. Pediatr.	Journal of Pediatrics	Academic journal
J Transl Med.	Journal of Translational Medicine	Academic journal

K

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
KPS	Karnofsky Performance Scale

L

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
LDN	Low dose naltrexone

M

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
MA	Master of Arts degree
MAVS	Mitochondrial antiviral signaling protein
MCAS	Mast cell activation syndrome
MCS	Multiple chemical sensitivity / Multiple chemical sensitivities
MCT	Medium chain fatty acid
MD	Medical Doctor
ME / M.E.	Myalgic Encephalomyelitis or less commonly Myalgic Encephalopathy
MEA	ME Association
MECFSSA	The ME CFS Foundation South Africa
ME/CFS	Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Med Sci Sports Exerc	Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise	Academic journal
MEGC	The ME Global Chronicle	Online newsletter
MESA	The ME Society of America
MFI	Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory
Mono	Mononucleosis [US], Glandular fever [UK]
MPS	Myofascial pain syndrome
MRC	Medical Research Council
MS	Multiple Sclerosis
MSc	Master of Science degree
MSIDS	Multiple Systemic Infectious Diseases Syndrome
MSM	Mainstream media
MSSE	Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise	Academic journal
MTHFR	methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase	A gene variant
MUPS / MUS	Medically unexplained physical symptoms / Medically unexplained symptoms

N

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
NAD / NAD+ / NADH	Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide
NAM	National Academy of Medicine	Formerly known as the Institute of Medicine
NCF	National CFIDS Foundation	Patient group
NCNED	National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases
Neuropsychol Rev.	Neuropsychology Review	Academic journal
NHS	National Health Service	UK's universal health care system
NICE	National Institute for Health and Care Excellence	UK body for diagnosis and treatment guidelines
NIH	National Institutes of Health	US government departments
NINDS	National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
NIOF	Neuro-Inflammatory and Oxidative Fatigue
NK cell / NKC	Natural killer cell
NMH	Neurally mediated hypotension
Nrf2	Nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2
N Z Med J.	New Zealand Medical Journal	Academic journal

O

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
OI	Orthostatic intolerance
OMF	Open Medicine Foundation	Research charity founded by Dr Ron Davis

P

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
P2P	Pathways to prevention report
PACE trial	Pacing, graded Activity, and Cognitive behaviour therapy Trial
PNAS	Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences	Academic journal
PEM	Post-exertional malaise	Also called Post-exertional Neuro Exhaustion (PENE)
PhD	Doctor of Philosophy	Research degree. Not a medical doctor.
PIFS	Post-infectious Fatigue Syndrome	Similar to Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome but includes non-viral infections e.g. bacterial
PLoS One / PLOS ONE	Public Library of Science	Academic journal
PMC	PubMed Central	Identifier
PMCID	PubMed Central Identifier	Identifier
PMD	Premenstrual disorder	Also known as PMS
PMDD	Premenstrual dysphoric disorder	Psychological disorder
PMID	PubMed Identifier	Identifier
PMS / PMT	Premenstrual syndrome / Premenstrual tension
PNAS	Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences	Academic journal
Polio	Poliomyelitis
POTS	Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome
PRS	Pervasive Refusal Syndrome
PSGL-1	P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1
Psychiatr Clin North Am.	Psychiatric Clinics of North America	Academic journal
Psychiatr Genet.	Psychiatric Genetics	Academic journal
Psychol Med.	Psychological Medicine	Academic journal
Psychosom Med.	Psychosomatic Medicine	Academic journal
PTSD	Post-traumatic stress disorder	Mental health condition
PVFS	Postviral fatigue syndrome	Alternative term for ME/CFS
PwCFS or PwCFS	Person with/suffering from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome	community term
PwF	Person with fatigue	community term
PwME	Person with/suffering from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis	community term

Q

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
QJM	QJM: An International Journal of Medicine, originally Quarterly Journal of Medicine	Academic journal
QMUL	Queen Mary University of London
Qual Life Res.	Quality of Life Research	Academic journal

R

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
RA	Rheumatoid arthritis
RLS	Restless legs syndrome
WED	Restless legs syndrome/Willis-Ekbom disease
RNase-L	Ribonuclease L

S

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
SEID	Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disease	Name not in use, but defines the ME/CFS diagnostic criteria used by the CDC since 2017
Semin Neurol.	Seminars in Neurology	Academic journal
SF-36	Short Form 36-Item Health Survey
SIBO	Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth	Sometimes called "leaky gut"
SLE	Systemic lupus erythematosus
SM	Social media
SMEG	Shropshire ME Group
SMC	Science Media Centre	UK group largely funded by industry and Big Pharma groups
SMC	Standard medical care
SMCI	Solve ME/CFS Initiative
Soc Sci Med.	Social Science & Medicine	Academic journal
SOD	Superoxide dismutase
SPECT / SPET	Single-photon emission computed tomography
SNRI	Serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor / Serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor	Class of anti-depressants
SSRI	Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor	Class of anti-depressants

T

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
TATT	Tired All The Time
TCA cycle	tricarboxylic acid cycle or Citric acid cycle
Th / Th1 / Th2	T helper cell
TLR	Toll-like receptor
TMD	Temporomandibular joint disorder
TMJ	Temporomandibular joint disorder
TNFα	TNF-alpha
Treg / Tregs	Regulatory T cell

U

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
UK	United Kingdom
US / USA	United States of America
USAWG	US Action Working Group

V

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
VAS	Visual analog scale
VDR	Vitamin D receptor
VEGF	Vascular endothelial growth factor
VNIH	Vagus nerve infection hypothesis
VZV	Varicella zoster virus

W

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
WAMES	Welsh Association of ME & CFS Support	UK patient group (for Wales)
WG	Working group
WHO	World Health Organization
WPI	Whittemore Peterson Institute

X

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
XMRV	Xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus

Y

Abbreviation	Meaning	Notes
YPWC	Young person with chronic fatigue syndrome