Chronic Fatigue Syndrome - a Cause?

Robert W. Griffith, MD

The chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is an incapacitating disease characterized by profound fatigue, which is not improved by bed rest and may be worsened by physical or mental activity. The CDC (Center for Disease Control) states that despite an intensive, decades-long search, the cause of CFS remains unknown. Different infectious agents and physiologic and psychological causes have been considered, but the search continues. Much has centered on the roles of the immune, endocrine and nervous systems. Genetic and environmental factors may play a role in developing and/or prolonging the illness. CFS is not caused by depression, although the two illnesses often coexist.

A report in the Journal of Clinical Pathology describes a study that should provide renewed interest in an infective cause. CSF patients often have gastrointestinal complaints. Stomach biopsies were done on 165 sufferers from CSF. An enterovirus protein was found in 82% of the biopsy samples, compared to 7% in biopsies from 22 normal volunteers. What was important was chronicity of the infection; follow-up biopsies were done 2-8 years after the initial one in six patients with persistent symptoms, and the results were the same.

If these results are confirmed elsewhere, it would make sense to use stomach biopsy as an objective test to correlate changes in viral presence and symptoms, before and after antiviral trartment. This seems a promising finding for this depressing disease.

Source
HealthandAge Blog

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