Differences between post-viral fatigue and ME/CFS

[Pendergast]

Because using an actual name with real medical meaning would validate all us crazy somatizers.

I finally got it!!

My understanding is that, as far as mainstream medicine is concerned, ME/CFS-style symptoms following infection are considered to be post-viral fatigue syndromes bydefault and a 'true' ME/CFS diagnosis is generally only given if the symptoms don't resolve on their own before a semi-arbitrary cutoffpoint.

That makes sense to me too. The bad thing is that usually is difficult to "catch" the acute phase of the infection (specially if the Dr. is lazy and/or useless) and correlate it with the following health issues and get a proper (and quickly) PVFS-->ME diagnosis.

 

[TigerLilea]

My understanding is that, as far as mainstream medicine is concerned, ME/CFS-style symptoms following infection are considered to be post-viral fatigue syndromes by default and a 'true' ME/CFS diagnosis is generally only given if the symptoms don't resolve on their own before a semi-arbitrary cutoff point. The cutoff point often used is 6 months, but it's fairly common-ish for postviral fatigue to linger for 1-2 years before recovery. Having one of these post-infectious episodes doesn't necessarily mean that you have a permanent/chronic case of ME/CFS, but it's something that only time will tell.

I was diagnosed as post-viral fatigue syndrome, and, here I am, 26 years later and still sick.

 

[Basilico]

As for the wider issue of the definition/nature of post-viral fatigue - my understanding, and I hope someone who's developed more knowledge from reading the literature than I have can weigh in - is that post-viral fatigue syndromes (including many CFS-like symptoms other than fatigue) are fairly common, yet almost always resolve, and that, from a clinical perspective, such post-viral episodes are generally assumed to be self-limiting and self-resolving.

The reason I ask is, well... if it's a month after my initial infection, and if the studies on the subject are any indication, post-viral symptoms are not uncommon - the uncommon thing is when they don't resolve and become chronic, which is when ME/CFS diagnoses are offered. Am I correct in that assumption? There are a lot of stories, e.g. of people taking months to recover from glandular fever and the like, but ultimately become completely well.

From personal experience, I had a really bad bacterial pneumonia infection about 7 years ago. I had to take 2 rounds of antibiotics before it started to subside. I was out of work for 3 weeks, and even though I was able to go back to work because my fever was gone and I could breathe and walk around, I could tell that I wasn't completely recovered for several months after that. So I think it is very possible that post-viral fatigue can outlast the initial infection and can take longer than one would expect to go away.

 

[HowToEscape?]

One of the MDs who treated people from the Incline Village outbreak and continued to search for a cause (Peterson?), said that our disease is a common endpoint which people arrive at by multiple means. Incline Village was some sort of pathogen, but it seems we did not all start on that path, or at least not exclusively, perhaps a post-viral condition opened a gate for the rest of it to happen.

Whatever it is, I still have trouble believing I'm here. Activities* which appear to require no understandable effort knock me flat a short time later, that is flat asleep, followed by being woozy.

*Activity in this case being 90% sitting down, with a bit of talking at a meeting. This is repeatable tho, the pattern
1. Go somewhere a modest distance from my apartment (via car, not walking)
2. Sit & talk >1 hour
2. Crash, can be from a day to over 6 months, depending on how far/how long item 2 was.

Until a few years before this hit, I just about lived in the gym and did road races and 100m (~150K) bike rides, etc. I was never, ever one to sit in front of a TV or who thought that exercise meant "a brisk walk".

 

[lintonthepenguin]

I was diagnosed as post-viral fatigue syndrome, and, here I am, 26 years later and still sick.

Yes - that's a very common story, from what I hear. I'm very sorry that your infection led to ME/CFS.

 

[philosopherofscience]

Hi lintonthepenguin. Thanks for asking these questions, as they are precisely the questions I now find myself asking.

It has been 8 months since your last post on this thread - did you recover??? I hope so.