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Chronic fatigue FAQ
What is the chronic fatigue syndrome?
The chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is an illness characterized by debilitating fatigue, neurological problems, and a variety of flu-like symptoms. The disease is also known as chronic fatigue immune dysfunction syndrome (CFIDS), and outside of the USA is usually called myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME). .
What is the frequency of the symptoms met at CFS patients?
|
Symptom/sign |
Frequency (%)
|
|
fatigue |
100 |
|
muscle weakness |
40 - 70 |
|
myalgias |
20 - 95 |
|
sleep disorder |
15 - 90 |
|
impaired cognition |
50 - 85 |
|
depression |
70 - 85 |
|
headache |
35 - 85 |
|
anxiety |
50 - 70 |
|
low-grade fever |
60 - 95 |
|
nausea |
50 - 60 |
|
dizziness |
30 - 50 |
|
night sweats |
30 - 40 |
|
painful lymph nodes |
30 - 40 |
What are some of the tests for CFS?
There are no specific tests to confirm the CFS diagnosis. Physical examination is usually conducted to confirm the symptoms, but often examination alone is not considered conclusive.
A health care provider can deduce a diagnosis of CFS only after ruling out all other known possible causes of fatigue, like drug dependence, endocrine diseases (such as hypothyroidism), infections, muscle or nerve diseases (such as multiple sclerosis) etc.
What is the prognosis for CFS patients?
This is difficult to predict. Some patients have completely recover after six months to a year. Others may take longer for a complete recovery. Some never recover or return to pre-illness energy and wellness levels.
What are the complications of CFS?
CFS causes what might be considered lifestyle restrictions. For people for whom the fatigue is so severe or unpredictable that they are essentially disabled and homebound during much of the course of the illness, this leads to social isolation and an inability to maintain steady employment.
What causes chronic fatigue syndrome?
No one is certain about what causes CFS. The symptoms may be caused by an immune system that isn't working well or by some kind of virus. For a slight majority of patients, the illness begins suddenly as flu or it appears gradually over a long period of time. There are cases when CFS appears with a severe head injury. Many speculated that CFS could have been latent in people and stress of trauma triggered the stress-hypersensitivity aspect of the illness.
Is CFS contagious?
Since the cause of the illness is not known, the question is still not answered. Many studies suggest that there is no correlation between CFS and casual or intimate contact. On the other hand, there are occasional reports of cluster outbreaks of CFS. How that can happen, while in other instances intimate family members did not pass on the disease, remains a mystery.
Do people die from CFS?
Essentially, the answer is no. | 
