# Testing for ME



## M&M (Jan 20, 2002)

Posted to Co-Cure:**********************************************************Testing for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis*please repost*Contrary to what many articles on M.E. in the media will tell you (and some of the more dubious medical texts unfortunately) it is not true that there are no tests which can aid in the diagnosis of M.E. nor is it true that M.E. is an illness where all tests 'will always be normal.'These are just myths.'Testing for M.E.' is a (fully referenced) basic overview of some of the series of tests which may be useful in confirming a suspected M.E. diagnosis. It also contains links to further information about all aspects of diagnosis in general from some of the world's leading M.E. experts.Some of these tests may also be useful in proving illness to social security (or for medical insurance) which may make this text particularly useful/timely for those in the UK (and to a lesser extent Australia) who may be having to deal with inflexible (and impossible if you have moderate-severe M.E.) 'welfare to work' reforms by Government.-----Testing for Myalgic EncephalomyelitisBy Jodi Bassett, February 2006For various reasons, many of the articles on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis in the mainstream media (and even some of the medical texts on the illness) unequivocally proclaim that not only are there no tests which can be utilised to help confirm a M.E. diagnosis, but that despite extensive testing no objective or quantifiable abnormalities have ever been found in any patients with M.E. whatsoever. Despite their popularity, these are simply absurd claims.The reality is that objective evidence of quantifiable organic abnormalities in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (or M.E. equivalent CFS: ME/ICD-CFS*) patients has existed since the 1950's. Not only are there a series of tests which readily allow a ME/ICD-CFS diagnosis to be confirmed, but more than 1000 medical studies have shown a variety of measurable and in some cases extremely severe abnormalities in many different bodily systems of M.E. patients. Abnormalities are also visible on physical exam.Tests will only all be normal in M.E. patients - as with all illnesses - if completely the wrong tests are done, or if those tested do not in fact have M.E. in the first place.As with a wide variety of illnesses; lupus, multiple sclerosis, and ovarian cancer for example, there is as yet no single test which can diagnose ME/ICD-CFS in all patients. Therefore, along with these other illnesses, M.E. must instead be diagnosed by a combination of: taking a detailed medical history (to rule out other possible causes of symptoms), noting the type and severity of symptomatology and other characteristics of the illness, the type of onset of the symptoms (a sudden onset of symptoms is most common in M.E. and rules out a wide variety of other illnesses) and looking for some of the physical signs of illness. A series of tests may also be necessary both to rule out other illnesses, and to help confirm a suspected M.E. diagnosis.This text will now focus on the series of tests which can be used to confirm a M.E. diagnosis as well as detailing some of physical signs common in M.E. patients which may also be useful for diagnosis.(Some of the tests listed may however also be useful in proving illness for the benefit of social security or insurance company entitlements, or may be used to determine appropriate treatments in patients who have already been diagnosed with M.E. References useful in providing further information about exclusionary tests - and all other aspects of diagnosis - are provided at the end of this text.)When discussing ME/ICD-CFS diagnosis (and testing) it is important to note that contrary to much of the propaganda surrounding the illness, it is not 'fatigue' or 'tiredness' that is the one essential characteristic of M.E. but central nervous system (CNS)dysfunction. It is this that must always be present for a legitimate diagnosis of M.E. to be made. The presence or absence of 'fatigue' is largely irrelevant in determining a M.E. diagnosis except in that its presence may of course make the diagnosis of a largenumber of well-known fatigue causing illnesses (depression, vitamin deficiency, multiple sclerosis or malignancy for example) considerably more likely. (Hyde & Jain, 1992)As leading M.E. expert Dr Byron Hyde MD explains: 'The one essential characteristic of M.E. is acquired CNS dysfunction, [not] chronic fatigue. A patient with M.E. is a patient whose primary disease is CNS change, and this is measurable. We have excellent tools for measuring these physiological and neuropsychological CNS changes: SPECT, xenon SPECT, PET, and neuropsychological testing.' (2003)Thus it is these tests which are therefore most critical in the diagnosis of M.E., although various other types of tests are also useful.......----To read on, see:http://www.ahummingbirdsguide.com/testingforme.htm(At 8 pages the entire document could not be posted)Also available on this page are Word, PDF and large print PDF downloads of the text, plus a link to a 2 page summary of the text, which may also be downloaded in a Word, PDF or large print PDF format.The primary references for this text are:The Complexities of Diagnosis by Dr Byron Hyde MDThe Canadian Guidelines Carruthers et alThe Clinical and Scientific Basis of ME/CFS edited by Dr Byron Hyde MDVarious texts by Professor Malcolm HooperI hope some of you will find this text useful in some way.Best wishes,Jodi Bassett-- A Hummingbirds Guide to Myalgic Encephalomyelitis:www.ahummingbirdsguide.com


----------

