There is no specific treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome but a combination of treatments is being used by the doctors to alleviate the symptoms and signs. Chronic fatigue syndrome, or CFS, is characterized by neurological problems, having flu-like symptoms, and debilitating fatigue, often experienced as poor stamina and extreme exhaustion. There are various core symptoms such as general pain, mental fogginess, excessive fatigue and gastro-intestinal problems, headaches, sleep disorder, sore throat, and abnormal temperature.
Display of symptoms varies among the patients. The degree of their severity varies, which can be between getting easily fatigued after stressful activity, being completely bedridden, and totally disabled. Should the symptoms not indicative of other serious health problems they should wane and disappear over time. For some patients, the chronic fatigue illness starts suddenly with a flu that does not go away completely while for other patients it gradually appears over a period of time. For many patients, the illness is often triggered after involving in high stress circumstance.
The combination is taken from the following treatments:
• Cognitive behavior treatment. This is a therapy combined with the gradual exercise and wherein the patient is treated by dealing with their mental health. The aim is to classify behaviors and negative beliefs that cause delay of recovery and eventually replace with positive, healthy behaviors.
• Moderating daily activities. The patient is encouraged to avoid or reduce excessive psychological and physical stress; however, it is not encouraged to take too much rest. In this treatment, the objective is to gently enhance the stamina and maintain moderate activity level.
• Gradual/steady exercise. This is a kind of exercise program where the patient relies on the help of physical therapist. It aims to increase gradually the level of exercise to improve chronic fatigue symptoms.
• Depression treatment. Depression is treated with serotonin re-uptake inhibitor and tricyclic anti-depressants. The anti-depressant does not only help treat depression but it can also relieve pain and improve sleep.
• Pain treatment. Like depression, pain is medically treated by administering non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, like ibuprofen or aspirin, or acetaminophen. These medicines can also aid in lowering the fever and pain.
• Allergy-like treatment. Medical treatment used is antihistamines, like cetirizine, decongestants, and fexofenadine. These drugs help relieve allergy symptoms like runny nose.
• Hypotension treatment. The low blood pressure is treated with drugs like atenolol, midodrine, and fludrocortisones. These are useful when people suffer from chronic fatigue.
• Poor nervous system treatment. Clonazepam is used to treat symptoms like skin tenderness and dizziness while anxiety is treated with alprazolam and lorazepam.
There are experimental therapies that experts continue to research with the aim of finding treatments for the syndrome. These therapies include the following:
• Acupuncture
• Anti-viral drugs
• D-ribose
• Methylphenidate
• Immune globulins
• Cholinesterase inhibitors
• Corticosteroids
The Food Diet
In addition to the above mentioned treatments, health experts advise patients to be careful with their diet. They recommend avoiding diet rich in toxins or those unhealthy foods. Patients should be careful with foods containing carcinogens, aspartame, additives, mono sodium glutamate, amalgam, fluoride, sugar, among others.
Unhealthy foods such as table or refined salt, margarine, hydrogenated fats, chlorinated water, refined oils, junk foods, fried and smoked foods, soft drinks, baking powder, and alcohol drinks can aggravate chronic fatigue symptoms so they must be avoided at most times.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
An Overview Of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome or CFS is the name given to a debilitating disorder characterized by conditions of extreme and lasting fatigue. Chronic fatigue syndrome is also commonly referred to as myalgic encephalomyelitis or ME. The name chronic fatigue can be somewhat confusing since chronic or persistent fatigue is also a symptom of several conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. Fatigue is the feeling of exhaustion that results from exertion, lack of sleep and illnesses. However, ordinary fatigue is not extreme or persistent, and the patient generally gets better after getting some rest.
What is Chronic Fatigue?
Chronic fatigue happens when this sensation of extreme exhaustion and lack of energy persists for over six months. The exact cause of chronic fatigue is not known but it is believed that several factors play a role in its symptoms, such as stress, hormone levels and infection. Lack of sleep, insomnia and other sleep disturbances can also result to chronic fatigue. Other factors that contribute to the development of chronic fatigue are poor diet, lack of exercise and certain medications.
What is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?
According to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases or NIAMS for a patient to be diagnosed as suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome, he must be having severe chronic fatigue for six months or longer. At the same time, the patient should also have four or more of the following symptoms:
Impaired short-term memory and concentration
Prolonged general malaise after physical exertion of any kind
Muscle pain
Pain, swelling and redness in multiple joints
Severe headache
Tender lymph nodes
Recurring sore throat
Un-refreshing sleep
Diagnosing Chronic Fatigue
Diagnosing chronic fatigue syndrome can be quite tricky since there are no physical signs that identify it. There are also no diagnostic laboratory tests that confirm chronic fatigue syndrome. A diagnosis of CFS is given if the symptoms recur for six consecutive months or more and there are no apparent explanations for the fatigue such as disease. However, it should be noted that there are other conditions that overlap and sometimes coexist with CFS and have similar symptoms.
A study of patients suffering from CFS revealed that only 38% of the patients were diagnosed solely with the syndrome. The rest had a diagnosis of a number of diseases such as fibromyalgia and multiple chemical sensitivity or both. Doctors are still unsure whether these conditions are direct causes or have common causes with CFS; or whether that have no relationship whatsoever with chronic fatigue syndrome.
Treatment and Medication
There is still no known cure for CFS so treatments are aimed at relieving the symptoms and improving the body's functions. To achieve this, doctors usually recommend a combination of medications and non-drug therapies. Lifestyle changes, dietary restrictions, nutritional supplements are also recommended as an addition to drug therapy. Patients who suffer from CFS are also urged to have regular exercise to help reduce the symptoms of chronic fatigue.
However, the doctor should carefully supervise physical activity as this can exacerbate the symptoms of chronic fatigue.
It is important that the patient discuss his/her symptoms with the doctor. It is also important that doctors know what other medications the patient is taking since some medications can exaggerate the symptoms of CFS. Recovery rates from chronic fatigue syndrome are varied.
In a 2005 review of published studies on CFS, it was revealed that improvement rates varied from 8% to 63% with 40% of the patients improving during follow-up.
Click Here To Cure Your Chronic Fatigue
What is Chronic Fatigue?
Chronic fatigue happens when this sensation of extreme exhaustion and lack of energy persists for over six months. The exact cause of chronic fatigue is not known but it is believed that several factors play a role in its symptoms, such as stress, hormone levels and infection. Lack of sleep, insomnia and other sleep disturbances can also result to chronic fatigue. Other factors that contribute to the development of chronic fatigue are poor diet, lack of exercise and certain medications.
What is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?
According to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases or NIAMS for a patient to be diagnosed as suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome, he must be having severe chronic fatigue for six months or longer. At the same time, the patient should also have four or more of the following symptoms:
Impaired short-term memory and concentration
Prolonged general malaise after physical exertion of any kind
Muscle pain
Pain, swelling and redness in multiple joints
Severe headache
Tender lymph nodes
Recurring sore throat
Un-refreshing sleep
Diagnosing Chronic Fatigue
Diagnosing chronic fatigue syndrome can be quite tricky since there are no physical signs that identify it. There are also no diagnostic laboratory tests that confirm chronic fatigue syndrome. A diagnosis of CFS is given if the symptoms recur for six consecutive months or more and there are no apparent explanations for the fatigue such as disease. However, it should be noted that there are other conditions that overlap and sometimes coexist with CFS and have similar symptoms.
A study of patients suffering from CFS revealed that only 38% of the patients were diagnosed solely with the syndrome. The rest had a diagnosis of a number of diseases such as fibromyalgia and multiple chemical sensitivity or both. Doctors are still unsure whether these conditions are direct causes or have common causes with CFS; or whether that have no relationship whatsoever with chronic fatigue syndrome.
Treatment and Medication
There is still no known cure for CFS so treatments are aimed at relieving the symptoms and improving the body's functions. To achieve this, doctors usually recommend a combination of medications and non-drug therapies. Lifestyle changes, dietary restrictions, nutritional supplements are also recommended as an addition to drug therapy. Patients who suffer from CFS are also urged to have regular exercise to help reduce the symptoms of chronic fatigue.
However, the doctor should carefully supervise physical activity as this can exacerbate the symptoms of chronic fatigue.
It is important that the patient discuss his/her symptoms with the doctor. It is also important that doctors know what other medications the patient is taking since some medications can exaggerate the symptoms of CFS. Recovery rates from chronic fatigue syndrome are varied.
In a 2005 review of published studies on CFS, it was revealed that improvement rates varied from 8% to 63% with 40% of the patients improving during follow-up.
Click Here To Cure Your Chronic Fatigue
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