TGI Friday! Our weekly round-up of recently published research abstracts | 7 April 2017

April 7, 2017


From Translational Psychiatry (open access), 4 April 2017.

Immune network analysis of cerebrospinal fluid in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome with atypical and classical presentations

M Hornig(1,2), C G Gottschalk(3), M L Eddy(1), X Che(1), J E Ukaigwe(1), D L Peterson(3) and W I Lipkin(1,2,4,5)
1) Center for Infection and Immunity, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA
2) Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY, USA
3) Sierra Internal Medicine at Incline Village, Incline Village, NV, USA
4) Department of Neurology, College of Physicians & Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
5) Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, College of Physicians & Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
Correspondence: Dr M Hornig, Center for Infection and Immunity, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, 722 West 168th Street, Room 1706, New York, NY 10032, USA. E-mail: mady.hornig@columbia.edu

Abstract

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a persistent and debilitating disorder marked by cognitive and sensory dysfunction and unexplained physical fatigue. Classically, cases present after a prodrome consistent with infection; however, some cases are atypical and have a different presentation and comorbidities that pose challenges for differential diagnosis.

We analyzed cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from 32 cases with classical ME/CFS and 27 cases with atypical ME/CFS using a 51-plex cytokine assay. Atypical subjects differed in cytokine profiles from classical subjects.

In logistic regression models incorporating immune molecules that were identified as potential predictor variables through feature selection, we found strong associations between the atypical ME/CFS phenotype and lower CSF levels of the inflammatory mediators, interleukin 17A and CXCL9.

Network analysis revealed an absence of inverse inter-cytokine relationships in CSF from atypical patients, and more sparse positive intercorrelations, than classical subjects. Interleukin 1 receptor antagonist appeared to be a negative regulator in classical ME/CFS, with patterns suggestive of disturbances in interleukin 1 signaling and autoimmunity-type patterns of immune activation.

Immune signatures in the central nervous system of ME/CFS patients with atypical features may be distinct from those with more typical clinical presentations.


from BMC Family Practice (open access), 27 March 2017.

From good health to illness with post-infectious fatigue syndrome: a qualitative study of adults' experiences of the illness trajectory.

Stormorken, E(1), Jason, LA (2), & Kirkevold, M(1)
1) Department of Nursing Science, Institute of Health and Society, University of Oslo
2) Center for Community Research, DePaul University

Abstract

BACKGROUND

Municipal drinking water contaminated with the parasite Giardia lamblia in Bergen, Norway, in 2004 caused an outbreak of gastrointestinal infection in 2500 people, according to the Norwegian Prescription Database.In the aftermath a minor group subsequently developed post-infectious fatigue syndrome (PIFS). Persons in this minor group had laboratory-confirmed parasites in their stool samples, and their enteritis had been cured by one or more courses of antibiotic treatment. The study’s purpose was to explore how the affected persons experienced the illness trajectory and various PIFS disabilities.

METHODS

A qualitative design with in-depth interviews was used to obtain first-hand experiences of PIFS. To get an overall understanding of their perceived illness trajectory, the participants were asked to retrospectively rate their functional level at different points in time. A maximum variation sample of adults diagnosed with PIFS according to the international 1994 criteria was recruited from a cohort of persons diagnosed with PIFS at a tertiary Neurology Outpatient Clinic in Western Norway.

The sample comprised 19 women and seven men (mean age 41 years, range 26–59). The interviews were fully transcribed and subjected to a qualitative content analysis.

RESULTS

All participants had been living healthy lives pre-illness. The time to develop PIFS varied. Multiple disabilities in the physical, cognitive, emotional, neurological, sleep and intolerance domains were described.

Everyone more or less dropped out from studies or work, and few needed to be taken care of during the worst period. The severity of these disabilities varied among the participants and during the illness phases.

Despite individual variations, an overall pattern of illness trajectory emerged. Five phases were identified: prodromal, downward, turning, upward and chronic phase. All reached a nadir followed by varying degrees of improvement in their functional ability. None regained pre-illness health or personal and professional abilities.

CONCLUSIONS

The needs of persons with this condition are not met. Early diagnosis and interdisciplinary rehabilitationcould be beneficial in altering the downward trajectory at an earlier stage, avoiding the most severe disability andoptimising improvement. Enhanced knowledge among health professionals, tailored treatment, rest as needed,financial support and practical help would likely improve prognosis.


From BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine (open access), 23 March 2017.

Acupuncture and moxibustion for chronic fatigue syndrome in traditional Chinese medicine: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Taiwu Wang, Cong Xu, Keli Pan and Hongyan XiongE
Department of Epidemiology, College of Preventive Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China

Abstract

BACKGROUND
As the etiology of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is unclear and the treatment is still a big issue. There exists a wide range of literature about acupuncture and moxibustion (AM) for CFS in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). But there are certain doubts as well in the effectiveness of its treatment due to the lack of a comprehensive and evidence-based medical proof to dispel the misgivings. Current study evaluated systematically the effectiveness of acupuncture and moxibustion treatments on CFS, and clarified the difference among them and Chinese herbal medicine, western medicine and sham-acupuncture.

METHODS

We comprehensively reviewed literature including PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, CBM (Chinese Biomedical Literature Database) and CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure) up to May 2016, for RCT clinical research on CFS treated by acupuncture and moxibustion. Traditional direct meta-analysis was adopted to analyze the difference between AM and other treatments. Analysis was performed based on the treatment in experiment and control groups. Network meta-analysis was adopted to make comprehensive comparisons between any two kinds of treatments. The primary outcome was total effective rate, while relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were used as the final pooled statistics.

RESULTS

A total of 31 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were enrolled in analyses. In traditional direct meta-analysis, we found that in comparison to Chinese herbal medicine, CbAM (combined acupuncture and moxibustion, which meant two or more types of acupuncture and moxibustion were adopted) had a higher total effective rate (RR (95% CI), 1.17 (1.09 ~ 1.25)).

Compared with Chinese herbal medicine, western medicine and sham-acupuncture, SAM (single acupuncture or single moxibustion) had a higher total effective rate, with RR (95% CI) of 1.22 (1.14 ~ 1.30), 1.51 (1.31–1.74), 5.90 (3.64–9.56). In addition, compared with SAM, CbAM had a higher total effective rate (RR (95% CI), 1.23 (1.12 ~ 1.36)).

In network meta-analyses, similar results were recorded. Subsequently, we ranked all treatments from high to low effective rate and the order was CbAM, SAM, Chinese herbal medicine, western medicine and sham-acupuncture.

CONCLUSIONS

In the treatment of CFS, CbAM and SAM may have better effect than other treatments. However, the included trials have relatively poor quality, hence high quality studies are needed to confirm our finding.

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