Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) are serious, debilitating conditions that affect millions of people in the United States and around the world. ME/CFS can cause significant impairment and disability. Despite substantial efforts by researchers to better understand ME/CFS, there is no known cause or effective treatment. Diagnosing the disease remains a challenge, and patients often struggle with their illness for years before an identification is made. Some health care providers have been skeptical about the serious physiological - rather than psychological - nature of the illness. Once diagnosed, patients often complain of receiving hostility from their health care provider as well as being subjected to treatment strategies that exacerbate their symptoms. Beyond Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome proposes new diagnostic clinical criteria for ME/CFS and a new term for the illness - systemic exertion intolerance disease(SEID). According to this report, the term myalgic encephalomyelitis does not accurately describe this illness, and the term chronic fatigue syndrome can result in trivialization and stigmatization for patients afflicted with this illness. Beyond Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome stresses that SEID is a medical - not a psychiatric or psychological - illness. This report lists the major symptoms of SEID and recommends a diagnostic process.One of the report's most important conclusions is that a thorough history, physical examination, and targeted work-up are necessary and often sufficient for diagnosis. The new criteria will allow a large percentage of undiagnosed patients to receive an accurate diagnosis and appropriate care. Beyond Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome will be a valuable resource to promote the prompt diagnosis of patients with this complex, multisystem, and often devastating disorder; enhance public understanding; and provide a firm foundation for future improvements in diagnosis and treatment.

In this enlightening and compassionate guide, one of the foremost specialists in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome--himself a ten-year survivor of the disease--helps victims and their loved ones regain control of their lives. This updated edition includes new information about current medical treatments, related disorders, and strategies for living with the CFS.

An important medical milestone for anyone connected with ME/CFS! Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Clinical Working Case Definition, Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols includes a clinical definition (clinical diagnostic criteria) for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The clinical case definition was developed by an expert medical consensus panel of treating physicians, teaching faculty and world leaders in the research of ME/CFS. An expert subcommittee of Health Canada established the Terms of Reference for the consensus panel. The definition more adequately reflects the complexity of symptoms of a given patient’s pathogenesis and should establish ME/CFS as a distinct medical entity and help distinguish it from overlapping medical conditions in the absence of a definitive laboratory test. “The clinical definition will enable clinicians to make an early diagnosis which may assist in lessening the impact of ME/CFS in some patients,” said Dr. Bruce M. Carruthers, lead author of the definition. “It will reduce the expensive problem of patients being sent to many specialists before being diagnosed and will allow patients to receive appropriate treatments in a timely fashion.” The panel's clinical case definition determines that more of the prominent symptoms are compulsory and symptoms that share a common region of pathogenesis are grouped together for clarity. In addition to severe prolonged fatigue, the definition includes the hallmark symptoms of post-exertional malaise and/or fatigue, sleep dysfunction, pain, two or more of the given neurological/cognitive manifestations, and at least one of the given symptoms from two of the categories of autonomic, neuroendocrine, and immune manifestations. Diagnostic exclusions and common co-morbid entities are also given. The special issue of the Journal of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome also includes a discussion of prominent symptoms, clinical practice diagnostic and treatment guidelines based on the best available research evidence, and an overview of available research on ME/CFS. The expert panel of 11 physicians—who have diagnosed and/or treated more than 20,000 ME/CFS patients between them—has developed a clinical case definition that provides a flexible conceptual framework based on the characteristic patterns of symptom clusters, which reflect specific areas of pathogenesis. The expert subcommittee of Health Canada selected the expert consensus panel. Authors include: Dr. Bruce M. Carruthers, lead author of the consensus document; co-author of the draft of the original version of the ME/CFS clinical definition, diagnostic and treatment protocols document; internal medicine, Galiano, British Columbia. Dr. Anil Kumar Jain, co-author of the draft the original version of the ME/CFS consensus document, affiliate of Ottawa Hospital, Ontario. Dr. Kenny L. De Meirleir, Professor Physiology and Medicine, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium; ME/CFS researcher and clinician; organizer of the World Congress on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Related Disorders; a board member of the American Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; and co-editor of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Critical Reviews and Clinical Advances (Haworth) Dr. Daniel L. Peterson, affiliate of the Sierra Internal Medicine Associates in Incline Village, Nevada; ME/CFS researcher and clinician; a board member of the American Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; and member of the International Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Study Group Dr. Nancy G. Klimas, Clinical Professor of Medicine in Microbiology/Immunology/Allergy and Psychology, University of Miami School of Medicine; ME/CFS researcher and clinician; a board member of the American Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; and member of the federal CFS Coordinating Committee Dr. A. Martin Lerner, staff physician at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan; Clinical professor and former chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Wayne State University's School of Medicine; and ME/CFS researcher and clinician Dr. Alison C. Bested, haematological pathologist; former head of the Division of Haematology and Immunology at the Toronto East General and Orthopaedic Hospital; affiliate of the Environmental Health Clinic and Sunnybrook & Women's College Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario; ME/CFS researcher and clinician Dr. Pierre Flor-Henry, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, University of Alberta; Clinical Director of General Psychiatry and Director of the Clinical Diagnostic and Research Centre, both based at Alberta Hospital in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; ME/CFS brain researcher Dr. Pradip Joshi, internal medicine, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John's, Canada Dr. A. C. Peter Powles, Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Health Science, McMasters University, Hamilton; Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto; Chief of Medicine and Sleep Disorders Consultant, St. Joseph's Health Centre, Toronto; Sleep Disorder Consultant at the Sleep Disorder Clinic at St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, and Central West Sleep Affiliation, Paris, Ontario Dr. Jeffrey A. Sherkey, family medicine, affiliate of the University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario; and diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome nearly 10 years ago Marjorie I. van de Sande, Consensus Coordinator; and Director of Education for the National ME/FM Action Network, Canada Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Clinical Working Case Definition, Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols also addresses diagnostic exclusions and common co-morbid entities. This groundbreaking book is must reading for anyone connected with the disease—personally or professionally.

You’ve been repeatedly poked, prodded, tested and scanned, yet, despite how awful you feel, your doctor, like many of your friends, co-workers, and family members have begun dropping subtle (and some not-so-subtle) hints that they think it’s “all in your head.” Maybe you’re one of the lucky few CFS sufferers who’ve received an accurate diagnosis but nothing your health care provider does seems to help. Well, you’re not alone. According to recent estimates, of the approximately 800,000 Americans with CFS, more than 90% have been misdiagnosed, dismissed, or are not receiving proper treatment. Don’t despair, help has arrived. Written by a national expert who has successfully treated scores of CFS patients in her own practice, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for Dummies gives you the knowledge and tools you need to beat CFS and get back to living a normal life. In plain English Doctor Susan Lisman fills you in on: What CFS is, how you get it, and how it effects your body Its major symptoms and warning signs Getting an accurate diagnosis Avoiding situations that might be making you sicker Teaming up with the right doctor and crafting a treatment plan The most effective drugs, therapies and alternative approaches Coping with CFS in your personal and professional lives Packed with checklists, self-tests, questionnaires, and other powerful tools, and featuring many inspiring real-life stories of patients who’ve licked CFS, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for Dummies puts you on the road to recovery.

This book provides a helpful structure and framework for understanding Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) and its effects as well as practical exercises to help address some of the symptoms that patients may experience.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is one of the most enigmatic medical disorders of our time, striking adults most often in their most productive years. With the controversial debate over cause and treatment of the illness in mind, the authors seek to unravel many of the questions surrounding the disorder and its features and characteristics. Integrating an overview of the latest research with patients' personal experiences, they look at CFS in relation to: * clinical features * personal and economic implications * biological and psychosocial factors * experiencing symptoms * coping with the illness. This book will provide hope for people with chronic fatigue syndrome and will assist health professionals in working with people with CFS to improve their quality of life.