MEDICAL MATTERS
- Medical Matters features questions asked by Members of the ME Association on health-related topics.
- Dr Charles Shepherd and the ME Association's other advisers answer these questions by sharing their expert knowledge.
- Medical Matters is based on the popular ‘Ask the Doctor’ series in ME Essential magazine.
- It is a free resource that supplements the detailed information contained in the full range of literature that can be found in the website shop.
Search all questions
Choose a letter to see our categories
- Show all
- A
- B
- C
- D
- E
- F
- G
- H
- I
- J
- K
- L
- M
- N
- O
- P
- Q
- R
- S
- T
- U
- V
- W
- Y
- 5
- SLE
- SNOMED-CT
- SPECT Scans
- SSRI
- Safety
- Salbutamol
- Saliva Tests
- Samaritans
- Sarcoidosis
- Scotland
- Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis
- Second Opinion
- Secondary Care
- Seizure
- Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor
- Self-Help
- Sensory Disturbances
- Sensory Neuropathy
- Sepsis
- Septicaemia
- Serotonin
- Sertraline
- Serum Alkaline Phosphatase
- Severe ME/CFS
- Severe Pain
- Shaking
- Shingles
- Shortness of Breath
- Side-effects
- Sjogren’s syndrome
- Skin
- Skin Rashes
- Sleep
- Sleep Disturbance
- Slurred Speech
- Smoking
- Social Care
- Social Services
- Sodium
- Solicitor
- Sore Throat
- Sotrovimab
- Specialist Services
- Specialists
- Spinal Cord
- Statins
- Steroids
- Stimulants
- Stomach Issues
- Stomach Pains
- Stress
- Stretching Exercises
- Stroke
- Supplements
- Surgery
- Swallowing
- Swallowing Problems
- Sweating
- Swimming
- Swimming Pool
- Swollen Glands
- Swollen Lymph Nodes
- Swollen Salivary Glands
- Swollen hands and feet
- Symptoms
- Synacthen
- Synacthen stimulation test
Questions in the Category: Shortness of Breath
Treatment: Modafinil
I have had PoTS and ME/CFS for over 10 years and now have Long Covid as well – if that’s even possible as perhaps they are the same thing anyway? My question is about a drug called Modafinil as I have been offered a trial of this treatment from my PoTS consultant to help with my fatigue. I have looked online and can’t find a lot regarding its use in patients with ME/CFS. Please could you point me in the right direction for any research on this or anyone with ME/CFS that has any experience of taking it. One of my main concerns is that it will create a false energy high, so that I will want to do more, then I will end up with worse PEM and crashing. Another potential problem is that I already have mental-health issues as some of the side-effects are mental-health related.
Symptoms: Pins and Needles
I’m in my early forties and have had moderate ME/CFS for about 5 years. I have all the usual symptoms but I now have a new and rather distressing sensation in my arms and sometimes in my legs. It is very similar to the ‘pins and needles’ sensation you can get when your legs have been crossed for too long. These abnormal sensations come and go and don’t seem to be triggered by anything in particular. Is this yet another symptom of ME/CFS? Or do I need to go and see my doctor?
Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis or Encephalopathy, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and Long Covid
Please can you define what PVFS, ME/CFS, and Long Covid mean. I am having difficulty determining if they are the same disease or different. Thank you!
Symptom: Sore Throat
Like many people with ME I have more than my fair share of sore throats – sometimes accompanied by enlarged neck glands. I’ve read the MEA guidance on the self-help management of sore throats and I know that there’s usually no point in going to the doctor to ask for antibiotics. But having had a really nasty attack this winter, which did result in my GP prescribing a course of antibiotics, it would be helpful if you could clarify when we do need to consult a doctor.
Dr Charles Shepherd
Dr Shepherd has been Trustee and Hon. Medical Adviser to the ME Association for more than 40 years. He is integral to the charity's activities and provides information and support based on his professional knowledge, personal experience as a doctor with ME/CFS, and the understanding gained from helping many thousands of people with the condition. He was a member of the comittee responsible for the 2021 NICE Clinical Guideline and is a recognised expert on ME/CFS in the UK. His knowledge extends to Post-Viral Fatigue Syndromes (PVFS), Myalgic Encephalopathy/Encephalomyelitis (ME), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), and Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC) or Long Covid.
If you have questions about ME/CFS or Long Covid, you can:
- Review the free information in the What is ME/CFS? section of the website, and the free Covid-19 and Long Covid information in the website shop.
- Review the largest range of literature covering all aspects of living with ME/CFS. Download detailed information about symptoms, diagnosis, management, co-mordities, employment, education, related health conditions, The 2021 NICE Clinical Guideline, welfare benefits etc.
- Join the ME Association as a member and you'll receive the highly-rated ME Essential magazine, and you can ask questions of the charity’s expert advisers including Dr Shepherd.
- Contact us via the ME Connect Telephone Helpline (open 365 days a year) and speak to one of the national team of fully-trained volunteers who waiting to provide information and support.
- Contact us via email or social media: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn.
Medical Matters is based on the popular ‘Ask the Doctor‘ series featured in the highly-regarded member’s magazine, ME Essential, and in the healthcare professional magazine, ME Medical. Both are produced by the ME Association and published as hard-copy magazines every 3 months and sent to members and healthcare professionals by post to home or business addresses.
If you are an HCP you can sign-up here to receive ME Medical magazine (people with ME/CFS can also nominate their HCP by completing the sign-up form).
