Re:Chronic fatigue syndrome
by Someone on Sunday July 31, 2011 @11:30AM
(#2828530)
For those unfamiliar with medical terminology: the trailing 'S' for 'syndrome' gives away that something is a set of symptoms. They may or may not have a single cause, and we may or may not know the causes.
If we find the cause or a partial cause of a syndrome, it will get a new label. That is why "AIDS" has given way for "HIV infection", "Scurvy" for "Vitamin C deficiency", etc. CFS, being a syndrome, may Or may not have a single cause. We simply do not know.
A (IMO) problem with such vague syndromes is that, in general, it pays of to claim to be part of a a larger group. It is more accepted to say your son has ADHD than to say he cannot concentrate well, or that one has CFS than that one is lethargic., does not feel like doing much, etc.
Net effect is that, even if there is a group of true patients with well-defined symptoms with a common cause, it is hard to separate them from "me too" persons (a group that may include persons that have a different unknown ailment with similar symptoms)
If we find the cause or a partial cause of a syndrome, it will get a new label. That is why "AIDS" has given way for "HIV infection", "Scurvy" for "Vitamin C deficiency", etc. CFS, being a syndrome, may Or may not have a single cause. We simply do not know.
A (IMO) problem with such vague syndromes is that, in general, it pays of to claim to be part of a a larger group. It is more accepted to say your son has ADHD than to say he cannot concentrate well, or that one has CFS than that one is lethargic., does not feel like doing much, etc.
Net effect is that, even if there is a group of true patients with well-defined symptoms with a common cause, it is hard to separate them from "me too" persons (a group that may include persons that have a different unknown ailment with similar symptoms)