Doctors are failing to spot the brain injury that could be behind 30,000 cases of 'chronic fatigue'

[Valentijn]

When I was 9 I was at summer day camp and we were having a boys versus girls type war. I went to eat alone in a little open cabin (empty doors and windows), and someone threw a rock through the window and hit me in the back of the head.

It didn't hurt or anything, but I blanked out for a couple seconds and had fallen forward from the built-in bench to land on my hands and knees on the floor.

 

[alex3619]

Almost all of us will have had head injuries, particularly older patients. Even if you don't remember an injury, that doesn't mean you never had one, you might still have pituitary issues, particularly given viruses can also induce the problems. There is no substitute for testing.

 

[justy]

Hey @Valentijn I read this opening bit as when I was 91 at summer camp!!!

When I was 9 I was at summer day camp

I was always under the impression summer camp was for kids

 

[Snow Leopard]

I had scans when I was first diagnosed, so *shrugs*. I had plenty of bike crashes as a child too, but nothing immediately before I became ill.

 

[alex3619]

About the only thing scans are good for with the pituitary is diagnosed a tumor. It tells us nothing about the biochemistry.

 

[Hell...Hath...No...Fury..]

They often used to say that ME followed trauma, often car crashes and whiplash etc. i used to think non of that applied to me but i've just remembered from this thread about a year before getting ill, i was attacked from behind on the tube train.
Punched in the back and side of my head many, many times (and i was already a severe migraine sufferer back then before the ME) i was dragged by my hair to the ground and punched some more. I could hear my brain rattling inside my skull. Couldn't brush my hair for a week because of the scabs. I never got that seen to but the migraines did get progressively worse after that and then after the virus and tetanus jab when i became bedridden i had a non stop migraine 24/7 for the first 2 years of the ME.

It would be interesting to see how many of us had some form of 'head bashing' before the ME kicked in

 

[A.B.]

It would be interesting to see how many of us had some form of 'head bashing' before the ME kicked in

I had a heavy mattress tilt and fall on my head (it was leaning againt a wall). I heard crunching sound in my neck and it hurt for weeks but I didn't go see a doctor because everything seemed to be fine. Mattress sounds harmless but this one was so heavy and large and adult man would have problems lifting it off the ground. Around that time I started having extreme morning fatigue. A year later I suddenly became fatigued full time for no reason (no infectious symptoms) and never recovered. Things gradually got worse over time

I think we need a study on how many CFS patients were hit on the head before the first appearance of symptoms.

 

[Judee]

I thought this was an interesting thread, even though it's pretty old. I thought I would bump it in case it applies to anyone. I don't remember ever having a head injury but others may have.

Edit: Here is what Perplexity.Ai said is a Glycogen Stimulation test:

A glucagon stimulation test is a medical procedure used to evaluate growth hormone deficiency, particularly in adults.

How it Works​

1. The patient fasts overnight before the test.
2. A baseline blood sample is taken to measure initial growth hormone levels.
3. The patient is given an intramuscular injection of glucagon, a hormone that stimulates the release of growth hormone from the pituitary gland.

• Blood samples are taken at regular intervals (e.g. every 30-60 minutes) over the next 2-4 hours to measure the peak growth hormone response to the glucagon stimulation.
• In a normal response, growth hormone levels should rise significantly after the glucagon injection. A blunted or insufficient rise in growth hormone levels is indicative of growth hormone deficiency.

Key Points​

• It is a relatively simple, safe and well-tolerated test compared to other stimulation tests like the insulin tolerance test.
• It avoids the risks of inducing hypoglycemia like in the insulin tolerance test.
• It can simultaneously evaluate adrenal function by measuring cortisol levels during the test.
• Normative data and appropriate cut-off values need to be established, especially for use in children.
• Side effects like nausea, vomiting and headaches can occur but are generally mild.

So in summary, the glucagon stimulation test directly stimulates growth hormone release and measures the pituitary's ability to produce adequate growth hormone, aiding in the diagnosis of growth hormone deficiency.

This was another old thread where a woman found out her ME/CFS was GHD: https://forums.phoenixrising.me/threads/my-cfs-me-was-ghd.36797/

 

[Dysfunkion]

I've been knocked on the head quite a bit throughout my life but mine was progressive, I eventually got the point where I had to rely on supplements to survive and doctors had no idea what was wrong with me. As I got older I needed more and more support o maintain my energy levels and cognitive functioning. I remember the event that kickstarted the worst years of my life though that points to mine being infection born. I was making some meat on an old grill at my place I no longer live (this place also had mold issues that got worse as time went on too) and at the time I wasn't doing great but I ate the food off the improperly maintained grill and my bloating and abdominal/liver pain got so bad that it felt like I had rocks in there. Couldn't eat, couldn't move much, wretched feeling mentally (panic, severe depression, hopeless), and after that I had no choice but to cut back on food and go largely vegan with supplements because it was the only thing that kept things at bay. This was back around 2014.

 

[kushami]

This reminded me of this article:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/heal...63d2aa-1ea6-11ea-8d58-5ac3600967a1_story.html