How Is Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/chronic Fatigue Syndrome Diagnosed
Your doctor diagnoses ME/CFS by performing a mental and physical examination. Doctors will ask about your medical history and order blood and urine tests to check for infection. In many cases, doctors refer people with suspected ME/CFS to other specialists to rule out other illnesses that could be causing symptoms.
For your doctor to diagnose ME/CFS, you must have these 3 symptoms:
- Severe fatigue lasting at least 6 months that does not improve with rest or sleep
- Difficulty sleeping
- Fatigue that gets worse after mental or physical exercise
Additionally, you must have at least 1 of the following symptoms:
- Orthostatic intolerance
What Is The Difference Between Fibromyalgia And Myofascial Pain Syndrome
Myofascial pain syndrome is similar to fibromyalgia, but there are important differences in symptoms and treatment. One big difference is that myosfascial pain is confined to a specific area and is associated with trigger points. For more information, see the Made for This Moment myofascial pain syndrome page.
A person can have both fibromyalgia and myofascial pain syndrome. That makes it especially important to consult with a medical specialist who can diagnose the difference and apply the proper treatments for each condition.
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Expert Explains Possible Causes Of Muscle Weakness Or Leg Fatigue
- 24 Mar 2021, 10:16 IST
Pain or fatigue in the legs is a very common symptom, which can be caused by various underlying factors. You may have an increased risk for leg fatigue if youre female, overweight, or older.
This happens because the lower body carries the weight of the upper body. You must have experienced that sitting or standing for a long time can cause the legs to feel tired and heavy. A variety of underlying factors can also cause leg discomfort.
To understand this better HerZindagi exclusively spoke to Dr Santosh B Patil, who is a consultant Neuro and Vascular Interventional Radiologist at The Vein Center
Pain, soreness, or cramping, leg fatigue may be accompanied by any of the following factors. Leg fatigue isnt usually a cause for a major health concern, but its still significant that you pay attention to your body when fatigue occurs. Especially if you have other symptoms, said Dr Patil and explained some possible causes for leg fatigue:
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Diagnosis And Treatment For Me/cfs
Currently, there is no single test to diagnose ME/CFS. Doctors make a diagnosis by excluding all other illnesses that might be causing symptoms and following accepted diagnostic criteria. The persons results from routine medical tests will often be normal, but additional tests may show abnormalities.
Physical Or Emotional Trauma
A few people report that they encountered a physical issue, medical procedure or significant emotional stress shortly before their manifestations started.
Fatigue can be a side effect of numerous ailments, for example, infections or psychological disorders. In general, in case you have excessive or persistent weariness, visit your doctor.
Every individual has various symptoms and hence may require different kinds of treatment to deal with the issue and ease their indications. Work with your group of healthcare providers to make the best therapy plan for you. They can go over the potential advantages and side effects of the treatments with you. Take into consideration that sometimes even a 5-minutes daily workout can boost your mood and rejuvenate you even when you feel tired.
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Postexertional Malaise And Immune Function
CFS/ME patients report a changeable pattern to their symptoms and physical and cognitive capabilities, often with severe symptom exacerbation following physical exercise . This is termed PEM, with approximately 95% of CFS/ME patients experiencing PEM . As regards the cause of PEM, it has been suggested that exercise may exhibit the ability to amplify preexisting immune abnormalities, in addition to oxidative and nitrosative stress . Immunological abnormalities have been reported following exercise in CFS/ME. For example, observations in CFS/ME symptom flare after moderate intensity exercise have been reported to be directly linked to the levels of interleukin-1 , IL-12, IL-8, IL-10, and IL-13, 8 hours after exercise . Additionally, sustained increase in plasma TNF- in CFS/ME patients and not in healthy controls has been observed after exercise . Moderate intensity exercise has also been reported to induce a larger 48-hour postexercise area under the curve for IL-10 .
Joint Pain: Youre Not Alone
In a recent national survey, nearly one out of every three adults in the US reported having joint pain within the last 30 days. In this survey, deep pain was the most common complaint, followed by shoulder and hip pain
Joints connect your bones together, providing your body with support as you move. Joint pain can impact just about any part of your body, including the ankles, feet and hands. While joint pain can occur at any age, it becomes increasingly common as a person ages.
Damage to your joints caused by injury or disease cannot only interfere with movement, but can also be a common cause of pain. Some of the most common conditions leading to painful joints include rheumatoid arthritis, bursitis, osteoarthritis, gout, strains, sprains and other injuries, such as in sports.
As with back pain, joint pain can vary greatly in terms of severity in the amount of time that it lasts. For example, joint pain that resolves within a few weeks is referred to as acute. However, many people suffer from chronic joint pain, or pain that lingers for weeks or months at a time.
Other common causes of joint pain include:
- Autoimmune diseases, including lupus and rheumatoid arthritis
- Seasonal allergies
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What Can Cause Muscle Pain
Unlike joint pain, muscle pain is most commonly caused by overuse, strain, or injury to a specific muscle.4 This is common among athletes and people who begin exercising after long periods of inactivity. However, muscle pain can also be due to an illness or infection in the body, and this is where the symptoms can mirror joint pain.5 Individuals may feel pain in their muscles due to influenza, chronic fatigue syndrome, and hypothyroidism. Medical conditions that can cause muscle pain, as well as joint pain, include Lyme disease,6 fibromyalgia,7and polymyalgia rheumatica.8
What Complications Are Associated With Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/chronic Fatigue Syndrome
For some people, the fatigue associated with ME/CFS makes activities of daily living very difficult or even impossible. Research shows that only half of all people diagnosed with ME/CFS work full-time or part-time jobs.
ME/CFS causes significant depression in many people living with the condition. If you experience depression, talk with your doctor â effective treatments are available.
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How Will Me/cfs Affect My Quality Of Life
Not everyone will experience the same symptoms so itâs important not to compare people with ME/CFS. People with ME/CFS can have very different experiences of the condition and how long their symptoms last.
The impact of symptoms can be:
As symptoms change over time so does the impact they have on peopleâs lives.
Conditions Affecting Brain Drive To Muscles
Anxiety: generalised tiredness can be caused by anxiety. This is due to overactivity of the bodys adrenaline system.
Depression: general weariness and a feeling of generalised tiredness can also be caused by depression.
Note: anxiety and depression are both conditions which tend to cause a sense of tiredness and fatigability rather than true weakness.
Chronic pain: a general effect on energy levels can result from chronic pain. Like anxiety, it stimulates the production of chemical substances in the body which respond to pain and injury. These chemicals lead to feelings of tiredness or fatigue. In chronic pain, true weakness can result, as muscles may not be used due to pain and discomfort.
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Symptoms Of Chronic Fatigue
According to the Institute of Medicine of National Academies in the US, ME/CFS affects 836,000 to 2.5 million Americans since 2015. For this reason, early prevention and treatment for chronic fatigue can avoid this disease. If youre experiencing some of these chronic fatigue symptoms, it may be best to visit your local hospital right away.
- Unending body, joint, and muscle pain for more than six months
- Extreme exhaustion even after short periods of exercise
- Restless leg syndrome
Electromyography Of Fatigue Of Back And Hip Muscles In Athletes With Chronic Low Back Pain
Keywords
APA
Khorsandi Kolur, M., Norasteh, A., & Daneshmandi, H. . Electromyography of Fatigue of Back and Hip Muscles in Athletes with Chronic Low Back Pain. Sport Sciences and Health Research, 3, 39-54.
MLA
masoud Khorsandi Kolur aliasgher Norasteh hasan Daneshmandi. “Electromyography of Fatigue of Back and Hip Muscles in Athletes with Chronic Low Back Pain”. Sport Sciences and Health Research, 3, 1, 2011, 39-54.
HARVARD
Khorsandi Kolur, M., Norasteh, A., Daneshmandi, H. . ‘Electromyography of Fatigue of Back and Hip Muscles in Athletes with Chronic Low Back Pain’, Sport Sciences and Health Research, 3, pp. 39-54.
VANCOUVER
Khorsandi Kolur, M., Norasteh, A., Daneshmandi, H. Electromyography of Fatigue of Back and Hip Muscles in Athletes with Chronic Low Back Pain. Sport Sciences and Health Research, 2011 3: 39-54.
Explore Journal
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What Is The Outlook For Someone With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
The long-term outlook varies quite a bit. There may be times when your symptoms are not too bad and other times when they flare up and become worse. However, many people improve over time and some recover well. Children and younger people have a better rate of full recovery. Early diagnosis and treatment may lessen the impact of the illness. The important thing to remember is that this is not a progressive or life-threatening disease and that for many people full recovery is possible.
What Questions Might A Healthcare Provider Ask To Help Diagnose An Autoimmune Disease
When your healthcare provider interviews you, they might ask you one or more of the following questions:
- What medications are you taking?
- What are your symptoms?
- How severe are your symptoms?
- Have you had to go to the emergency department because of your symptoms?
- How long have you had these symptoms?
- In what ways are your symptoms affecting your quality of life?
- Is there anything that triggers your symptoms? Anything that makes them worse?
- Is there a history of autoimmune diseases in your family?
- Which autoimmune diseases run in your family?
- What over-the-counter or alternative medicines have you tried, if any?
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Tips For Exercising Safely With Me/cfs
If you feel you can tolerate some exercise, be guided by your doctor or specialist, but general suggestions include:
- Experiment to find the type of exercise that works best for you. Choose from a range of gentle activities such as stretching, yoga, tai chi, walking and light weight training. Often, people find exercises lying down use less energy.
- Keep an activity diary so you have a long-term picture of your performance levels and factors that might impact on your symptoms. Some people with ME/CFS find they feel good straight after exercise, but then crash later on, so make sure you monitor how you feel, hours to days after exercise.
- Stop the physical activity well before you feel any symptom flare. Pacing yourself is very important.
- Remember that the amount of exercise you can do will change from one day to the next.
- Listen to your body if you dont feel up to exercising on a particular day, dont.
- Find out as much as you can about your ME/CFS. Make sure you consult with health professionals who fully understand ME/CFS as a biomedical disease
Evaluation Of Pain In Many Joints
In evaluating joint pain, doctors first try to decide whether joint pain is caused by a disorder of the joints or a serious bodywide illness. Serious bodywide disorders may need specific immediate treatment. The following information can help people decide when to see a doctor and know what to expect during the evaluation.
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Pacing Activity For People With Me/cfs
Pacing, or keeping within your available energy, is a self-management strategy to help people with ME/CFS make sure that they dont overdo activity or exercise. It reduces the likelihood of triggering PEM and can help reduce symptoms. Pacing is not a cure for ME/CFS and does not treat the underlying, physical cause of the disease.
The goal of pacing is for activity to be sustainable, so that the person can have some stability in their symptoms and what they can do each day. Pacing should be used in conjunction with rest.
The most challenging aspect of pacing is that PEM is very often delayed by as much as 24-48 hours, which can make it difficult to recognise when youve done too much. Using tools like an activity diary or heart rate monitor help you learn about your body and how much activity you can safely tolerate.
Suggestions on how to pace yourself include:
What Else Could It Be
The symptoms of ME/CFS are similar to those of other conditions.
If you think you may have ME/CFS it’s important to see a GP to make sure you get a correct diagnosis. A GP should also be able to refer you to a ME/CFS specialist if they think it would help you.
Page last reviewed: 29 October 2021 Next review due: 29 October 2024
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Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Diagnosis
As more research is done on ME/CFS, the criteria for diagnosis continue to be updated. There are a few possible sets of criteria physicians may choose to use in their diagnosis. However, most of these criteria sets require the following:
- Post-exertional malaise , or worsened fatigue after performing usual activities
- Unrefreshing sleep or other sleep problems
- Widespread pain or discomfort, such as muscle or joint pain or headache
- Two or more types of neurological or cognitive dysfunction, such as impaired memory and concentration
- Symptoms lasting longer than six months
There is no chronic fatigue syndrome test to verify whether or not a person has the syndrome. Instead, physicians take a history of patient symptoms, including family history. They often conduct tests to rule out the possibility of other diseases, including urine and blood tests. Physicians may also refer patients to specialists to ensure other diagnoses are ruled out.
Experts note that patients may be diagnosed with both ME/CFS and an additional source of chronic fatigue. Some comorbidities of ME/CFS include:
- Allergies and sensitivities
Abnormal Ampk Activation And Glucose Uptake
A recent study reported striking biochemical differences in skeletal muscle cultures established from 10 CFS/ME patients and 7 age-matched controls. Samples were subjected to electrical pulse stimulation , for 24 hours, and examined for exercise-associated changes. Key differences emerged, in the basal state there was increased myogenin expression in CFS/ME samples but a decrease in IL-6 secretion during differentiation when compared to control samples. Following 16 hours of EPS there was a significant increase in AMP-activated protein kinase phosphorylation and glucose uptake in control samples when compared to unstimulated control cultures. Alternatively, CFS/ME samples demonstrated no increase in AMPK phosphorylation or glucose uptake. Nevertheless, glucose uptake remained responsive to insulin, suggesting exercise related dysfunction. Furthermore, IL-6 secretion in response to EPS was significantly reduced across all time points measured.
However, it is important to consider the role of physical activity on AMPK activation. For example, trained subjects have been reported to express higher levels of 1 AMPK in comparison to untrained individuals . Furthermore, a 3-week endurance training intervention with young male participants resulted in increases in 1 and 2 AMPK protein expression in addition to ACC- phosphorylation, which suggested basal activity of AMPK to be increased .
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What Are The Symptoms Of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Symptoms of CFS often mimic the flu. The following are the most common symptoms of CFS. However, each person may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include:
- Sensitivity to light
- Low-grade fever
The symptoms of CFS may look like other medical conditions. Always talk with your healthcare provider for a diagnosis.
Chronic Pain And Fatigue: How To Cope With The Symptoms
Do you struggle with chronic pain? Has exhaustion sapped your mojo? Have you wondered if these two problems are interlinked? Chronic pain and fatigue often go hand in hand. But before we dive into why, and give you evidence-based advice on how to cope, lets look at the definitions to ensure were on the same page.Chronic pain is pain that, Lasts beyond normal healing time after injury or illness generally 3 to 6 months. It is pain that just keeps going. While the definition is simple, the process is not. There are a range of complex physical and psychological factors involved. Long-term fatigue is also, by definition, chronic in nature it, too, just keeps going. Research published in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management noted that:Chronic fatigue has been described as a sustained sense of whole-body exhaustion that is disproportionate to the level of physical exertion and is not relieved by rest.This kind of depletion has profound consequences. Tiredness can strike without physical exertion and is not remedied by a good sleep. This can lead to a poorer quality of life.A self-perpetuating cycle can also brew: pain worsens fatigue, fatigue leads to further pain, ad nauseam.
This raises an important question
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Treatment For Muscle And Joint Pain
In case you dont have any other symptoms that would indicate having one of the conditions described below consider using some homemade treatments to ease the pain.
Here is what you can do to relieve muscle discomfort:
