the name ‘Chronic Fatigue Syndrome ’ was made-up in the mid-1980’s- whereas ME was defined in the mid- 1950’s The name “CFS” , unlike “ME”, is a definition which does not and never did, describe the known signs, symptoms, history and pathology of M.E The name “CFS” does not - and neither do any of the CFS Definitions, identify or capture true ME patients. The name CFS was created in the US in 1988 by a board of 18 members, for the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , few of whom had either looked at an epidemic of M.E, or examined any patients with M.E, With very few exceptions the remaining members never published on ME again. Even though “ME”is a World Health Organization-defined serious neurological disease, the CDC definition ignores the neurological symptoms; the cardinal feature of ME . The new, revised and influential 2005 empiric CFS definition, which identifies an even broader range of patients, has criteria which can even include people physically capable of running a marathon ! The CDC has made the CFS criteria so loose that it eliminates anyone with any neurological signs or symptoms - even though ME is a neurological disease. ME patients report worse pain than patients with rheumatoid arthritis or multiple sclerosis, conditions in which pain is recognized as a major symptom Severe ME leaves a person as functionally impaired as someone suffering from diabetes, heart failure and kidney disease, and as severely disabled as someone with heart failure, late-stage AIDS, Multiple Sclerosis , or a person undergoing chemotherapy Myalgic Encephalomyleitis (ME) is a complex multisystemic metabolic-inflammatory disorder, involving profound dysregulation of the central nervous system (CNS) , immune system dysfunction , cardiovascular abnormalities , autonomic nervous system dysfunction; Studies suggest that ME costs the US economy at least $26billion a year. ME affects about one million Americans The mortality rate, in ME, is about 12.5 % - higher than the population at large. The average age of death from Cancer in ME is 47.8 years - in the general population it is 72 years. The average age of death from Heart Failure in ME is 58.7 years - in the general population it is 83.1 years. Symptoms are extremely severe for about 25% of people who have ME, many of whom are house and bedbound for decades. A Severe ME patient feels effectively the same every day as an AIDS patient two weeks before death.
The Great American ME Scandal (for Obama)