Dr. A. Martin Lerner - Press Statement

Physician Challenges Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Community to Implement Universal Measurement Tool
 


A lot is happening within the CFIDS/ME community at the moment - with the release of the XMRV research findings and the upcoming CFS Advisory Committee meeting in Washington, DC - doctors and patients are standing up together.  To keep this momentum moving, and to capitalize on the shared vision of doctors and patients alike, Dr. A. Martin Lerner is issuing a call to action for use of a common language in CFS evaluation and treatment.

Attached provides a press release as well as a PDF of his universal CFS measurement/diagnostic benchmark.  If you would like to include in your next member communication, or simply discuss further, I'm happy to answer any questions or put you in touch with Dr. Lerner directly. 

Thanks much, and look forward to working together in the near future.

Regards,
Ann Cavanagh, Communications Director
Dr. A. Martin Lerner CFS Foundation
www.treatmentcenterforcfs.com
415.990.7150


Dr. A. Martin Lerner founded the Treatment Center for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) in Beverly Hills, MI.  An Infectious Diseases specialist who was at one time plagued by CFS, he has committed his life’s work to the diagnosis and treatment of CFS for patients around the world.  Currently, he is finalizing a research paper on the diagnosis of CFS, the role of Epstein Barr Virus, Human Herpes Virus-6 and Cytomegalovirus infections and co-infections in CFS, the effect these viruses have on the heart, and the use of oral antiviral treatments for CFS.  In the past 50 years Dr. Lerner has written over 200 original articles spanning all areas of infectious diseases and virology.

Press Release

For Immediate Release

Contact: Ann Cavanagh, Communications Director

Dr. A Martin Lerner CFS Foundation

+1 415.990.7150

anncavan@yahoo.com

 

Physician Challenges Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Community to Implement Universal Measurement Tool

  • Universal tool for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) will improve evaluation, treatment and legitimacy of disease
  • Energy Index Point Score® (EIPS®) Measures Disability of CFS Patients
  • EIPS® validated through research published In Vivo: The International Journal of Experimental and Clinical Pathophysiology and Drug Research
BEVERLY HILLS, MI – October 19, 2009 — Dr. A. Martin Lerner of the Treatment Center for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (www.treatmentcenterforcfs.com) in Beverly Hills, MI issues an immediate call to action to the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) community - in an effort to implement a universal measurement guideline for the treatment of CFS.

“The CFS community urgently requires a common measurement to evaluate and treat patients.  Just as oncologists are able to determine treatment and prognosis based on the stage of cancer, an infectious disease physician can do the same for CFS,” says Dr. A. Martin Lerner, Founder of The Treatment Center for CFS in Beverly Hills, MI.

“With measurement tools comes a common language for research, a universal standard for evaluation and treatment, and ultimately the legitimacy this disease deserves.  I issue a call to action today, to physicians and patients alike, to join me in using the Energy Index Point Score® system for treatment of CFS.”

Dr. A. Martin Lerner of The Treatment Center for CFS in Beverly Hills, MI has devoted the past 20 years of his life to research and treatment of CFS after recovering from the disease himself.  During his efforts, Dr. Lerner realized the need for a measurement tool to evaluate the degree of disability for each patient, as well as track the success of each recovery. Without a benchmark, fatigue was too subjective and difficult to measure.  From this need he created the Energy Index Point Score® (EIPS®), Registered, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office - a functional capacity measurement tool for CFS patients (reference attached PDF for the EIPS® system).

The EIPS® system defines the severity of patient fatigue, 0-10, through measurement of real-life situations including one’s ability to sit, stand, be out of bed, work, perform housework, socialize, exercise. The EIPS® level is determined through discussion between the physician and patient.  A change in EIPS® level of one is a significant change in health and lifestyle for the patient, as CFS symptoms decrease when the EIPS® increases. For full EIPS® tool see attached PDF [click here] or visit http://www.treatmentcenterforcfs.com/energy_index_score/documents/EIPS.pdf

“Using the EIPS® as a benchmark for my practice and research has improved my ability to gauge illness as well as capture individuals’ improvements.  It is also an extremely helpful teaching tool for discussing parameters with a patient…what they can and can’t do as they heal” says Dr. Lerner.

“As a CFS patient, the EIPS® has helped me understand what my short-term and long-term goals are and should be. For example, I know that I’ll relapse again if I start to exercise before I’m an 8,” says Carol Gill, CFS patient of the Treatment Center for CFS. “Before I started treatment with Dr. Lerner I didn’t know how to manage my symptoms.  I was up one month and down the next.  With the use of his EIPS® management tool I’ve watched myself steadily improve over time.”

The EIPS® has been validated as a measurement for disability in patients with CFS through a research effort published by In Vivo: The International Journal of Experimental and Clinical Pathophysiology and Drug Research, entitled “Validation of the Energy Index Point Score to Serially Measure the Degree of Disability in Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.”

“In an effort to move forward in the treatment of this horrible affliction, we as doctors need to join together and assess patients uniformly. Just as the US government has assigned standard categories for storms in order to assess damages and prepare next steps, we as doctors who treat CFS need to rely on benchmarks for our patients in order to assess physical ailments and prepare our next steps,” says Dr. Lerner.

About Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS)

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, also called Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) or Myalgic Encephylomyelitis (ME), affects as many as 4 million people in the US alone, by CDC estimates, with a quarter disabled.  It affects more Americans than AIDS, lung cancer and breast cancer combined.  Research by the National Chronic Fatigue foundation found CFS sufferers average age of death to be as much as 20 years premature to the average American.  It is a multi-symptom disease, affecting the cardiovascular, immune and central nervous system.  The most publicized symptom of the disease is the crippling fatigue, with most patients bed-ridden for all but a few short minutes or hours per day.  To the naked eye these patients may look healthy, due to the “invisible” nature of the symptoms, many times causing confusion regarding its legitimacy.

About Dr. A. Martin Lerner
Dr. A. Martin Lerner founded the Treatment Center for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) in Beverly Hills, MI.  An Infectious Diseases specialist who was at one time plagued by CFS, he has committed his life’s work to the diagnosis and treatment of CFS for patients around the world.  Currently, he is finalizing a research paper on the diagnosis of CFS, the role of Epstein Barr Virus, Human Herpes Virus-6 and Cytomegalovirus infections and co-infections in CFS, the effect these viruses have on the heart, and the use of oral antiviral treatments for CFS.  In the past 50 years Dr. Lerner has written over 200 original articles spanning all areas of infectious diseases and virology.

About Dr. A. Martin Lerner CFS Foundation
The mission of this foundation is to advance research, treatment and dissemination of information leading to a better understanding of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Keywords:  Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, CFS, Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome, CFIDS, Myalgic Encephilomyelitis, ME, Energy Index Point Score, EIPS, Dr. A Martin Lerner, Treatment Center for CFS

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Last Updated: 21/10/2009