Question by country girl 006: How is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome diagnosed? I am exhausted 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I am getting ready?
to have a sleep apnea test done. I have been on sleeping pills prescribed to me by the doctor, but they don’t help at all. I am seriously sleep deprived! I am up at 12:00, I look at the clock and it’s 3:00, then I look again and it’s 5:30 AM, so I may as well just stay up. I don’t know how much longer I can take this. I am so tired, I feel like I could just “drop” at any moment. But, then again, when I have the chance to sleep, I can’t do it. Someone out there – help me!!! Like I said before, I am trying to have this diagnosed, but I would like some people’s opinions or suggestions. Thanks!
They have done blood work. Thyroid is perfect, cholesterol (both) is perfect, but I have iron deficiency and am anemic, too. I am on pills for that. I was in a car accident 2 1/2 years ago, had back surgery and complications from that. I was diagnosed with RSD, where my legs and feet are swollen to five times their normal size. I have a pain pump implanted and get morphine pumped into my spine. I have to walk with a walker to get around. I have to stay in bed most of the time, because of all the pain, but I am so dam* tired! Life is not good for me right now. I am on SSDI and am a single parent, trying to put 2 boys through college. How much more can a person take. Now that I think about it, a lot of this is probably stress, but I take an antidepressant, too. So you see, my life is pretty complicated. Nothing easy here! But, I still need some sleep!!!!!!!!!!
Best answer:
Answer by Gary S
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a disorder that causes extreme fatigue. This fatigue is not the kind of tired feeling that goes away after you rest. Instead, it lasts a long time and limits your ability to do ordinary daily activities.
Symptoms of CFS include fatigue for 6 months or more and experiencing other problems such as muscle pain, memory problems, headaches, pain in multiple joints, sleep problems, sore throat and tender lymph nodes. Since other illnesses can cause similar symptoms, CFS is hard to diagnose.
No one knows what causes CFS. It is most common in women in their 40s and 50s, but anyone can have it. It can last for years. There is no cure for CFS, so the goal of treatment is to improve symptoms. Medicines may treat pain, sleep disorders and other problems.
Diagnosing CFS requires ruling out other causes of chronic persistent fatigue, including a stressful lifestyle, cancer, or other illness such as adrenal or thyroid disorders, HIV, or AIDS. Since there are no laboratory tests that specifically make the diagnosis of CFS, the diagnosis is based on symptoms. People with CFS experience the following symptoms:
* Fatigue: People with CFS have long-term fatigue (lasting longer than 6 months to a year) that cannot be explained by other diseases. People with CFS may have had a previous infection. They are tired and “run down” during the infection, and the fatigue continues after the person has recovered from the illness.
* Cognitive difficulties: A typical complaint of people with CFS is that they have problems with short-term memory but not long-term memory. People with CFS may have problems finding or saying a particular word during normal speech (called dysnomia or verbal dyslexia).
* Postexertional fatigue: Postexertional fatigue may also be a problem for people with CFS. They are excessively tired after doing normal activities that were not difficult in the past.
* Fatigue after sleep: People with CFS also complain of fatigue even after long periods of rest or sleep. They do not feel refreshed after sleeping.
* Depression: People with CFS may become depressed because of difficulties performing at work or home, but depression does not cause CFS.
* Other symptoms that may be seen include headaches, muscle aches, sore throat, and even mild fever.
There is no single test to diagnose chronic fatigue syndrome. The disease is a diagnosis of exclusion, which means that all other conditions and illnesses that cause the symptoms are ruled out. CFS may be diagnosed based on the following:
* Certain signs and symptoms must be present. (People without cognitive dysfunction do not have CFS.)
* Some nonspecific laboratory tests, such as blood tests and tests of the immune system, suggest the diagnosis.
Laboratory tests are used to rule out other fatigue-causing diseases. Also, some laboratory abnormalities are seen in CFS and support the diagnosis.
Your doctor may perform the following tests:
* Tests to exclude other causes of fatigue: Thyroid, adrenal, and liver function tests are useful to rule out disorders that may cause fatigue. In people with CFS, the results of these tests should be normal.
* Blood tests: The most consistent laboratory abnormality in people with chronic fatigue syndrome is an extremely low erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR, the measurement of settling red blood cells in anticoagulated [non-clotting] blood). If the ESR is elevated or even in the high-normal range, another diagnosis is likely. If any other abnormalities are found on blood tests, your doctor may rule out CFS and begin testing for another condition.
* Antibody tests: Your doctor may order antibody tests to determine whether you have had a prior infection, such as Lyme disease, Chlamydia pneumoniae pneumonia, or Epstein-Barr virus.
Your doctor may perform the following imaging studies:
* CT scans or an MRI of the brain is useful to rule out other disorders of the central nervous system (CNS). Results of CT scans and MRI are normal in people with CFS.
* Single-photon emission computed tomography and/or positron emission tomography scans show decreased blood flow in areas of the brain (the frontoparietal/temporal region). This decreased blood flow explains the cognitive difficulties (short-term memory problems) in chronic fatigue syndrome.
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