{"id":15134,"date":"2026-03-20T00:00:53","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T23:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.institutchiaribcn.com\/enfermedades\/myalgic-encephalomyelitis-or-chronic-fatigue-syndrome\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T13:08:50","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T11:08:50","slug":"myalgic-encephalomyelitis-chronic-fatigue-syndrome","status":"publish","type":"enfermedades","link":"https:\/\/institutchiaribcn.com\/en\/myalgic-encephalomyelitis-chronic-fatigue-syndrome\/","title":{"rendered":"Chronic Fatigue Syndrome"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last update: 03\/20\/2026, <\/strong>Dr. Miguel B. Royo Salvador<\/strong><\/a>, Medical Board number 10389.<\/strong> Neurosurgeon and Neurologist.
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Definition<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), or Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), is a serious condition, a complex disorder of long duration that can affect many of the organism\u2019s systems. Characteristic is extreme fatigue that does not improve with rest and entails difficulties to carry out normal activities, sometimes it even stops the patient from leaving the bed. It is also defined as \u201cSystemic Exertion Intolerance Disease\u201d.<\/p>\n

The concept of Central sensitivity syndromes was introduced starting 1984 as the pathological concept embodying different processes with shared features, amongst them ME\/CFS and Fibromyalgia.<\/p>\n

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Fig.1 <\/em><\/p>\n

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Symptoms<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The typical ME\/CFS clinical picture can include some of the following: severe tiredness or extreme exhaustion lasting more than 24 hours after physical exertion, malaise or fatigue after physical exertion with worsening of the symptoms, joint or muscle pain without apparent cause, headaches, concentration and attention problems, memory loss, insomnia, nonrestorative sleep, dizziness, sore throat, mildly enlarged or pain in lymph nodes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Diagnosis<\/strong><\/h2>\n

To date, this was diagnosed by exclusion; a wide range of tests was conducted to rule out other conditions with similar symptoms before confirming the diagnosis. To reach a diagnosis by exclusion, the fatigue must have been present for the last six months and be associated with at least four of the mentioned symptoms.<\/p>\n

There are various criteria to take into account when considering the existence of a ME\/CSF: the 1994 Fukuda criteria, the 2003 Canadian Consensus Criteria (CCC) and the 2011 Myalgic Encephalomyelitis-International Consensus Criteria (ME-ICC).
\nAccording to Nakatomi Y. (2018), positron emission tomography (PET scans) has shown the existence of a very extended neuro-inflammation in the brain areas of patients affected by ME\/CSF, which is associated with the severity of their neuropsychological symptoms.<\/p>\n

The Filum System\u00ae method, referring to the scientific findings on Fibromyalgia<\/strong> – a condition that belongs to the same disease group as ME\/CSF \u2013 and based on the observation of several cases with the Filum Disease as a co-diagnosis, recommends MRI scans of the brain and spine.<\/p>\n

Through MRIs, the probable presence of signs for an abnormal traction of the spinal cord can be checked, as a possible correlated and visible alteration on the neuro-imaging level. Furthermore, a brain positron emission tomography (PET) is recommended.<\/p>\n

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Causes<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The specific causes for ME\/CSF are currently unknown.<\/p>\n

In terms of research on ME\/CSF, specialists consider that a congenital predisposition to the disorder could be triggered later by a combination of factors. Recognised as possible causal factors to be investigated are especially:<\/p>\n

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