Comment on: Doctors and social epidemics: the problem of persistent unexplained physical symptoms, including chronic fatigue. [Br J Gen Pract. 2002]
The editorial in the May 2002 issue by Drs Stanley, Peters and Salmon1 questions the validity of the report to the Chief Medical Officer stating that chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalopathy (CFS/ME) ‘is indeed a chronic illness meriting significant NHS resources, including the unreserved attention of the medical profession.’ They suggest that CFS/ME may be a ‘social epidemic’ where symptoms are generated by psychogenic mechanisms. They set high standards for discussions of these issues, advocating that information ‘must be interpreted within a rigorous scientific framework such as that afforded by the methods of qualitative research.’ Let us do just that. There have been repeated reports of objectively measurable physiological changes in CFS/ME.
You can read the rest of this comment here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1314419/pdf/12236282.pdf
Source: Pall ML. Chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalitis. Br J Gen Pract. 2002 Sep;52(482):762; author reply 763-4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1314419/pdf/12236282.pdf (Full article)