| Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Overview A very well-known problem to physicians is “chronic fatigue.” In 1869, a physician described undue fatigue which he termed neurasthenia. This was the first time it had been described in medical literature. This is interesting, since medical history goes back many more centuries. Could it be that the increasing changes in the environment from the beginning of the industrial revolution had something to do with that? Why wasn’t this “chronic fatigue” state described in the “books” of the 16th or 17th centuries? In contemporary vernacular, the terms “Yuppie Flu or Plague” and “Shirker’s Syndrome” have been used to describe this problem. The search for causes of this problem has been going on for more than 100 years. The major emphasis lately is a search for an elusive agent as the cause: Epstein-Barr virus and more recently retroviruses. The answer still eludes scientists because they are looking in the wrong place. In 1985, a group at the CDC formulated a set of criteria for the diagnosis of what it called chronic fatigue syndrome and what is now called chronic fatiuge and immunodysfunction syndrome. These criteria have done very little to elucidate the true cause of the problem. It has served only as a diagnostic label to test the efficacy of various pharmaceuticals to treat the symptoms that each patient presents to the doctor. It appears that “chronic fatigue” will be the dominant health disorder of the next century. A quarter of all patients presenting to their physicians do so with a complaint of “chronic fatigue.” The CDC estimates that there are 100,000 people with CFS in this country. This must be an underestimate by 50 times since they are talking about a small subset of the population of “chronic fatigue.” There are many illnesses that have chronic fatigue as a major symptom: depression, autoimmune disease, environmental illness and the classic reactivated viral type illness. All of these illnesses may have a similar basis for their development-molecular damage from oxidative stress or “rusting” of the cells. (This is a complicated concept which needs personal interpretation by someone knowledgeable in molecular medicine.) The state of chronic fatigue cannot be understood through simplistic single-agent, single-disease model. What is required is a holistic study of the biochemistry of man and his environment including: invading organisms, chemical and heavy metal damage, digestion, nutritional (anti-oxidant, etc.) deficiencies, and stresses of modern life. The recognition of the “flaws” or damaged areas from molecular injury and the elimination of those incitants is the only way to solve the puzzle of “chronic fatigue.” This can be done by a meticulous investigation into the human organism’s “systems” from a functional molecular standpoint. In this way, the causes of the problem are determined so that curative measures may be employed. Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome Introduction When we think of a patient with “chronic fatigue” we must be very specific about the characteristics of the complaints the patient has because there are various types of syndrome complexes that fall under the umbrella of “chronic fatigue.” The classic diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfuction Syndrome is made in a certain small group of patients with fatigue who meet the criteria that the CDC has set down (originally in 1988 and recently [1994] revamped). Drs. Cheney and Lapp have set up some guidelines to diagnose the classic disease: Exclude alternative diagnoses Inclusive criteria Finite and diminished energy persisting for at least six months and new in onset. New onset cognitive dysfunction with short term memory loss, confusion, disorientation, sequencing dysfunction, word searching or recall problems, diminished comprehension of oral or written information, difficulties in processing, maintaining of expressing thoughts, and problems with calculations. Does the patient have four out of ten of the classic symptoms that have been present chronically or intermittently for at least six months like: 1. Fever and/or chills. 2. Sore, scratchy relapsing, throat problem. 3. Lymphatic soreness or swelling in at least two sites. 4. Muscle discomfort, flu-like muscle aches; sore muscles to touch. 5. Fibromyalgia with 8 out of 18 classic tender spots. 6. Generalized weakness. 7. Joint discomfort: migratory and asymmetrical involving large joints more than small. 8. Headache-new onset pressure type: retro-orbital and occipital that worsens with stress and exertion. 9. Sleep disturbances and hypersomnolence (10/hrs/night plus naps). 10. Chronic frequent nausea. We are talking here about one type of “chronic fatigue” that affects a small group of patients. A larger group of “fatigue” illnesses don’t meet these criteria but the patients are just as ill. These are caused by other factors like: heavy metal toxicity, chemical toxicity, depression, nutritional deficiencies and many others. The underlying factor in these illnesses is pathology involving the mitochondria (cellular energy “storehouses”). What Is CFIDS? CFIDS (chronic fatigue and immune dysfunction syndrome) is also known as CFS (chronic fatigue syndrome), CEBC (chronic Epstein-Barr virus), M.E. (myalgic encephalomyelitis), “yuppie flu” and many other names. It is a complex illness characterized by incapacitating fatigue (experienced as exhaustion and extremely poor stamina), neurological problems and a constellation of symptoms that can resemble other disorders, including: mononucleosis, multiple sclerosis, Fibromyalgia, AIDS-related complex (ARC), Lyme disease, post-polio syndrome and autoimmune diseases such as lupus. These symptoms tend to wax and wane but are often severely debilitating and may last for many months or years. All segments of the population (including children) are at risk, but women under the age of 45 seem to be the most susceptible. What Causes CFIDS? |
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