Australia shouldn't fund 'totally inappropriate' CBT and GET
February 28, 2016
4 Comments
‘Chronic fatigue syndrome chronically underfunded’, Australian community radio current affairs program.
Category: Research
NIH patient participation and communication: what do you want to see?
February 25, 2016
12 Comments
How should patients be integrated into the NIH process? The US National Institutes of Health has made several promising, public steps forward in recent months, announcing a new commitment to research ME/CFS, hinting at possible new drug trials, and promising to use strict criteria including the Canadian Consensus Criteria to select patients for their intramural studies. Yet
NIH's initial response to article and comments on Walitt
February 23, 2016
11 Comments
Over the weekend we wrote to NIH to share our article about Brian Walitt, along with comments from the community. We have received an initial response, but expect there will be more responses forthcoming that directly address patients’ concerns. The NIH also said they are finalizing a communications plan on the study so that communications
Bad timing, Collins says of NIH response to CFSAC
February 22, 2016
3 Comments
On Feb. 8, I wrote to NIH Director Francis Collins to express concern over the NIH’s mostly negative responses to the CFS Advisory Committee’s latest recommendations; the slow pace of formal patient involvement in the NIH’s new ME/CFS research program; and the originally-released use of the outdated Reeves criteria for selecting patients for the upcoming NIH inpatient
Open letter to Francis Collins, director of NIH, concerning myalgic encephalomyelitis
February 21, 2016
2 Comments
Open letter to Francis Collins, director of NIH, concerning myalgic encephalomyelitis Dear Francis Collins: The following happened since I got sick, without the NIH funding myalgic encephalomyelitis (m.e.) as a global crisis: Humans landed on the moon AIDS discovered, science, HIV discovered, excellent treatments; 2015 US funding $30.7 billion.1 multiple sclerosis sufferers released from mental
NIH gives $246,000 for study of oral rehydration in ME/CFS patients with orthostatic intolerance
February 21, 2016
1 Comment
The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced a $246,000 grant to study the use of an oral solution of isotonic saline to reduce orthostatic intolerance (OI) in ME/CFS patients. The grant has been awarded to New York Medical College’s Professor Marvin Medow, who has long had an interest in OI in ME/CFS, particularly
NIH lead clinical investigator thinks CFS and fibro are somatoform
February 20, 2016
152 Comments
Brian Walitt is the lead clinical investigator for the NIH’s new intramural ME/CFS study. His appointment has raised serious concerns due to his strong views of diseases like chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia as psychosomatic. In 2015, Walitt co-authored a paper in which it was stated that CFS and fibromyalgia are somatoform illnesses, characterized by a “…discordance between the severity
Jennie Spotila Reports on NIH ME/CFS Spending in 2015
February 18, 2016
1 Comment
Jennie Spotila Reports on NIH ME/CFS Spending in 2015 Jennie Spotila has written another detailed analysis on NIH spending on ME/CFS research. On a positive note, spending on ME/CFS grants increased to $6,470,000 in 2015, which was a 20% increase over fiscal year 2014 and, “for the first time since at least 2009, there were no
Dr Nath on ACT UP and patient involvement in ME/CFS research
February 17, 2016
No Comments
At Tuesday’s CDC Grand Rounds Wilhelmina Jenkins, a long-time ME/CFS advocate, asked Dr. Avindra Nath, the PI of the NIH intramural study, a question about the planned Patient Advisory Committee mentioned in his presentation and about RFAs. We thought patients and allies may find a video and transcript of the question and Dr Nath’s response
Transcripts and Slides from Dr Nath's talk on NIH study
February 16, 2016
6 Comments
Update: The video of Dr Nath’s talk is now available on youtube. Dr Avindra Nath, Chief of the Section of Infections of the Nervous System at NINDS, gave a presentation on February 16 at CDC Grand Rounds going which went into detail on NIH’s new intramural ME/CFS study. The recording should be up on February 18 at http://www.cdc.gov/cdcgrandrounds/, but