Researchers have identified distinct subtypes of myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS – also referred to as chronic fatigue syndrome) and there is renewed hope that treatments are available for this debilitating neurological illness.
One
of these researchers is Dr A. Martin Lerner from Michigan, USA who
will be revealing his ground breaking data from observations over
the last seven years at the forthcoming International ME/CFS
Conference 2008 in Westminster, London, on 23rd May. Dr
Lerner’s research indicates that specific long-term anti-herpesvirus
pharmacokinetic administration of the drug valacyclovir/valganciclovir
provides long-term significant benefit to one group of ME/CFS
patients. Dr Lerner has identified two specific groups of patients;
one with Herpesvirus Illness (EBV, HHV6, HCMV) with no co-infections
and another Herpesvirus Illness with co-infections such as Lyme
Disease, Babesiosis, Adult Rheumatic Fever and Mycoplasma Pneomoniae
Myocarditis. Dr Lerner is the most experienced ME/CFS doctor in the
world with long-term experience of treating an identified subset of
patients with antivirals and has over twenty years of experience
studying ME/CFS. He
will be presenting his extensive data at the London conference,
organised by the charity Invest in ME.
The
theme of the conference is Sub Grouping of and Treatments for ME/CFS
and the conference is changing the view that ME/CFS can be treated
with a one-size-fits-all approach to treatment which the government
and the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) have been
advocating until now.
There is growing evidence of different subtypes and viral
involvement in ME/CFS and the conference has aroused interest from
the Chief Medical Officer and the UK Medical Research Council, both
of which will be represented at the conference.
Other speakers at the conference include Dr Jonathan Kerr
from St George’s University, London who has recently published a
study identifying seven different genomic subtypes of ME/CFS and
Dr John Chia, an infectious disease specialist from California, USA,
who is investigating antiviral treatments against enteroviruses as
his recently published research showed that 135 out of 165 (82%)
patients had stomach biopsy results that stained positive for
enterovirus antigens compared with 7/ 34 (20%) of controls.
Dr Judy Mikovits, research director from the unique Whittemore
Peterson Institute (WPI) in Nevada, USA will also be talking about
the institute’s future plans for research and will be presenting
data on a distinct subgroup of patients that is characterized by a
significantly increased incidence of the development of Non-Hodgkins
Lymphoma (NHL).
Myalgic
Encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS) is defined by the World Health
Organisation as a neurological illness (code WHO-ICD-10-G93.3). With
an estimated 250,000 sufferers of ME/CFS in the UK alone, of which
60,000 (one quarter of the people) are severely affected, many of
them children, the illness is thought to cost the UK economy over £6
billion per year. Little public funding of biomedical research is
currently provided by the government.
The varying symptoms experienced by many
severe ME/CFS sufferers may include: - post-exertional malaise,
general chronic weakness of limbs, cognitive problems such as memory
loss & concentration difficulties, severe headaches, problems with
balance and fine motor control, muscle pain, light sensitivity,
vocal/muscular limitations, hypersensitivity, sleep & temperature
disturbance, cardiovascular symptoms, digestive disturbances,
neurological disturbances.
In its most extreme form it can leave
sufferers bedridden and can even be fatal.
It
is hoped that the conference, bringing to an end ME Awareness Month,
will kick-start publicly funded biomedical research into ME/CFS
based on a more relevant and scientific approach to diagnosis and
treatment of the illness.
Details
of the CPD accredited conference may be found at –
www.investinme.org
3rd Invest in ME International ME/CFS Conference -
London 23rd May 2008 -
http://tinyurl.com/ytwgzd