Anonymous
Not logged in
Talk
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Search
Editing
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Diagnosis and Management in Young People: A Primer
(section)
From MEpedia, a crowd-sourced encyclopedia of ME and CFS science and history
Namespaces
Page
Discussion
More
More
Page actions
Read
Edit
Edit source
History
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
==Abstract== [[Myalgic encephalomyelitis]] / [[chronic fatigue syndrome]] (ME/CFS) is a complex disease that affects children and adolescents as well as adults. The etiology has not been established. While many pediatricians and other health-care providers are aware of [[ME/CFS]], they often lack essential knowledge that is necessary for diagnosis and treatment. Many young patients experience symptoms for years before receiving a diagnosis. This primer, written by the International Writing Group for Pediatric ME/CFS, provides information necessary to understand, diagnose, and manage the symptoms of ME/CFS in children and adolescents. ME/CFS is characterized by overwhelming fatigue with a substantial loss of physical and mental stamina. Cardinal features are [[malaise]] and a worsening of symptoms following minimal physical or mental [[exertion]]. These [[Post-exertional malaise|post-exertional]] symptoms can persist for hours, days, or weeks and are not relieved by rest or sleep. Other symptoms include cognitive problems, [[Unrefreshing sleep|unrefreshing]] or [[Sleep dysfunction|disturbed sleep]], generalized or localized [[pain]], [[Dizziness|lightheadedness]], and additional symptoms in multiple organ systems. While some young patients can attend school, on a full or part-time basis, many others are wheelchair dependent, housebound, or bedbound. Prevalence estimates for pediatric ME/CFS vary from 0.1 to 0.5%. Because there is no diagnostic test for ME/CFS, diagnosis is purely clinical, based on the history and the exclusion of other fatiguing illnesses by physical examination and medical testing. Co-existing medical conditions including [[Orthostatic intolerance|orthostatic intolerance]] (OI) are common. Successful management is based on determining the optimum balance of rest and activity to help prevent post-exertional symptom worsening. Medications are helpful to treat pain, [[insomnia]], OI and other symptoms. The published literature on ME/CFS and specifically that describing the diagnosis and management of pediatric ME/CFS is very limited. Where published studies are lacking, recommendations are based on the clinical observations and practices of the authors.<ref name="Rowe, et al, 2017" >{{Cite journal | last1 = Rowe | first1 = Peter C. | authorlink1 = Peter Rowe | last2 = Underhill | first2 = Rosemary A. | authorlink2 = Rosemary Underhill | last3 = Friedman | first3 = Kenneth J. | authorlink3 = Kenneth Friedman | last4 = Gurwitt | first4 = Alan | authorlink4 = Alan Gurwitt | last5 = Medow | first5 = Marvin S. | authorlink5 = Marvin Medow | last6 = Schwartz | first6 = Malcolm S. | authorlink6 = Malcolm Schwartz | last7 = Speight | first7 = Nigel | authorlink7 = Nigel Speight | last8 = Stewart | first8 = Julian M. | authorlink8 = Julian Stewart | last9 = Vallings | first9 = Rosamund | authorlink9 = Rosamund Vallings | last10 = Rowe | first10 = Katherine S. | authorlink10 = Katherine Rowe | url = https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fped.2017.00121/full | title = Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Diagnosis and Management in Young People: A Primer | journal = Frontiers in Pediatrics | volume = 5 | issue = 121 | pages = 121 | date = 2017 | pmid = | doi = 10.3389/fped.2017.00121 }}</ref>
Summary:
Please make sure your edits are consistent with
MEpedia's guidelines
.
By saving changes, you agree to the
Terms of use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 3.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)
Navigation
Navigation
Skip to content
Main page
Browse
Become an editor
Random page
Popular pages
Abbreviations
Glossary
About MEpedia
Links for editors
Contents
Guidelines
Recent changes
Pages in need
Search
Help
Wiki tools
Wiki tools
Special pages
Page tools
Page tools
User page tools
More
What links here
Related changes
Page information
Page logs