Charlotte Stephens, Research Correspondent, ME Association
We show below brief summaries of the research studies about ME/CFS that have been published in the last week, followed by the abstracts from those studies.
All research relating to ME/CFS can be located in the ME Association: Index of ME/CFS Published Research.
This extensive library of research is updated at the end of every month, and is correct to the end of August 2020. It is a free resource available to anyone.
The Index provides an A-Z of published research studies and selected key documents and articles, listed by subject matter, on myalgic encephalomyelitis, myalgic encephalopathy, and/or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).
You can use it to easily locate and read any research in a particular area that you might be interested in, e.g. epidemiology, infection, neurology, post-exertional malaise etc.
You can also find the Research Index in the Research section of the website together with a list of Research Summaries that provide lay explanations of the more important and interesting work that has been published to date.
ME/CFS Research Published 04 – 10 September 2020
This week, 3 new research studies have been published, including:
- Researchers from the USA have identified a set of biomarkers (specific autoantibodies present in the blood) that can be used to distinguish between patients with Gulf War Illness, patients with ME/CFS and healthy controls.
- The National Institutes of Health/Center for Disease Control and Prevention (NIH/CDC) established a post-exertional malaise (PEM) working group, with the aim of describing patients experience of PEM and creating a patient-driven questionnaire to assess PEM in ME/CFS. The researchers highlighted the importance of collaborating with the patient community in order to have a more accurate perspective of the illness.
ME/CFS Research References and Abstracts
1. Abou-Donia M et al. (2020)
Using Plasma Autoantibodies of Central Nervous System Proteins to Distinguish Veterans with Gulf War Illness from Healthy and Symptomatic Controls.
Brain Sciences 10 (9).
Abstract
For the past 30 years, there has been a lack of objective tools for diagnosing Gulf War Illness (GWI), which is largely characterized by central nervous system (CNS) symptoms emerging from 1991 Gulf War (GW) veterans.
In a recent preliminary study, we reported the presence of autoantibodies against CNS proteins in the blood of veterans with GWI, suggesting a potential objective biomarker for the disorder.
Now, we report the results of a larger, confirmatory study of these objective biomarkers in 171 veterans with GWI compared to 60 healthy GW veteran controls and 85 symptomatic civilian controls (n = 50 myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and n = 35 irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)).
Specifically, we compared plasma markers of CNS autoantibodies for diagnostic characteristics of the four groups (GWI, GW controls, ME/CFS, IBS).
For veterans with GWI, the results showed statistically increased levels of nine of the ten autoantibodies against neuronal “tubulin, neurofilament protein (NFP), Microtubule Associated Protein-2 (MAP-2), Microtubule Associated Protein-Tau (Tau), alpha synuclein (α-syn), calcium calmodulin kinase II (CaMKII)” and glial proteins “Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP), Myelin Associated Glycoprotein (MAG), Myelin Basic Protein (MBP), S100B” compared to healthy GW controls as well as civilians with ME/CFS and IBS.
Next, we summed all of the means of the CNS autoantibodies for each group into a new index score called the Neurodegeneration Index (NDI). The NDI was calculated for each tested group and showed veterans with GWI had statistically significantly higher NDI values than all three control groups.
The present study confirmed the utility of the use of plasma autoantibodies for CNS proteins to distinguish among veterans with GWI and other healthy and symptomatic control groups.
2. Hviid A et al. (2020)
Association between quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccination and selected syndromes with autonomic dysfunction in Danish females: population based, self-controlled, case series analysis.
BMJ 370: m2930.
Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the association between quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccination and syndromes with autonomic dysfunction, such as chronic fatigue syndrome, complex regional pain syndrome, and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome.
Setting: Information on human papillomavirus vaccinations and selected syndromes with autonomic dysfunction (chronic fatigue syndrome, complex regional pain syndrome, and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome) identified using ICD-10 (international classification of diseases, revision 10) diagnostic codes from Danish nationwide registers.
Participants: 869 patients with autonomic dysfunction syndromes from a cohort of 1,375,737 Danish born female participants aged 10 to 44 years during 2007-16.
Main outcome measures Self-controlled case series rate ratios (95% confidence intervals) of the composite outcome of chronic fatigue syndrome, complex regional pain syndrome, and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, adjusted for age and season, comparing female participants vaccinated and unvaccinated with the quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine. Chronic fatigue syndrome, complex regional pain syndrome, and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome were also considered separately in secondary analyses.
Results: During 10,581,902 person-years of follow-up, 869 female participants with syndromes of autonomic dysfunction (136 with chronic fatigue syndrome, 535 with complex regional pain syndrome, and 198 with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome) were identified.
Quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccination did not statistically significantly increase the rate of a composite outcome of all syndromes with autonomic dysfunction in a 365 day risk period following vaccination (rate ratio 0.99, 95% confidence interval 0.74 to 1.32) or the rate of any individual syndrome in the risk period (chronic fatigue syndrome (0.38, 0.13 to 1.09), complex regional pain syndrome (1.31, 0.91 to 1.90), or postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (0.86, 0.48 to 1.54)).
Conclusions: When vaccination is introduced, adverse events could occur in close temporal relation to the vaccine purely by chance.
These results do not support a causal association between quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccination and chronic fatigue syndrome, complex regional pain syndrome, or postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, either individually or as a composite outcome.
An increased risk of up to 32% cannot be formally excluded, but the statistical power of the study suggests that a larger increase in the rate of any syndrome associated with vaccination is unlikely.
3. Holtzman C et al. (2020)
Factors Affecting the Characterization of Post-Exertional Malaise Derived from Patient Input.
Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practise 13 (2).
Abstract
The National Institutes of Health/Center for Disease Control and Prevention (NIH/CDC) Common Data Elements (CDE) established a post-exertional malaise (PEM) workgroup with the task of describing PEM and recommending a standardized way of assessing it in patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).
As a stigmatized group, patients with ME/CFS are in need of instruments which can properly describe their symptomatic experiences, which can help reduce the disparity between illness seriousness and appropriate attention from healthcare.
The current study explored attitudes and preferences among 115 patients with ME/CFS who participated in the creation of a patient-driven instrument to measure PEM, the key symptom of the illness.
Themes that emerged from the qualitative analyses of patient feedback focused on how their illness was experienced; their access to care; problems with physicians, researchers, and research methods; and expressions of gratitude for the collaborative process.
Domains that were most important to the patient community were identified in the effort to create a comprehensive measure of PEM. Benefits of community based action research are discussed.
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