1. Community
  2. Brain and nerves
  3. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Other conditions that cause similar symptoms need to be ruled out first

Posted , 6 users are following.

shimlad
shimlad

I am interested to know if there is a set list of diseases that should be ruled out before CFS is diagnosed. Or will this list vary from doctor to doctor. I had a very bad illness that dcotors were unable to diagnose and eventuall told me it must be a bad virus and i should just rest, 6 months later i am still far from healthy, (although a little better). May docotr made a throw away comment about it could be CFS, brough on post viral, but im sure there must be many other things it could be that i havent been tested for...

1 like, 6 replies

6 Replies

  • david59662
    david59662 shimlad

    Posted

    Hi Shimlad, i started out EXACTLY like you, post viral and 15 months later i am still very unwell and progressive. I'm not getting better. I had to quit my job and my life has fell apart quite frankly. I have spent THOUSANDS on every test imaginable and also extensive testing from NHS revealling little. Firstly please prioritise LYME DISEASE, get tested and ask GP for ELISA AND western blot method. Lyme disease is notoriously difficult to diagnose and testing is unreliable so you can have false negative. Because i fell unwell 6 weeks from returning from a triathlon in the scottish highlands i believe this is where i got LD. My tests have been negative but i improve on some herbal remedies for LD. you might want to buy a bottleof samenot and do 30 drops see how your body reacts, i know mine felt normal again for a brief period. I'm still trying to convince my doctors to treat me for LD as i have all the symptoms. I'm now developing joint problems, the longer this has went on the more symptoms i have developed.
    • GeorgiaS
      GeorgiaS david59662

      Posted

      David I keep ruling out Lyme disease but I did get a virus while camping that hit me very badly for a month. I didn't get ME for a little while after that and I felt very healthy and happy but then smack like a train hit me, 10 years later still trying to work it out.
    • david59662
      david59662 GeorgiaS

      Posted

      Georgia, it could still be lyme. You need to do a trial of Samento and or Banderol, this is what started me on the journey as my body immediately responded at 30 drop dose. I'm still ill but now more convinced than ever i have lyme disease. Now i need to figure what best way to treat it. Just recently my joints are becoming effected, which is classis lyme disease.
    • GeorgiaS
      GeorgiaS david59662

      Posted

      Before I google them David could you sum them up, are they medical drugs or complementary treatments?

      I don't get aching joints but I get aching muscles and sometimes if I bend down or sitting down it's a huge painful effort to stand up. My legs sometimes don't want to work, and my arms hurt like heck when opening a tin or something sometimes. Does that sound like it?

      A friend said we can get it from deer ticks, the area I camped in is rural and all kinds of animals were able to roam around when no one was camping there. From healthy going to sleep I woke up in such an unhealthy state I had to be taken home. More sudden than normal flu surely? And no one else had the flu or a cold that I knew.

  • caitlin39841
    caitlin39841 shimlad

    Posted

    hi. CFS/ME is a condition of elimination/exclusion supported by the diagnostic criteria (& NICE guidelines -UK) in whatever country you live in. conditions with similar/overlapping symptoms that have to be ruled out by blood tests include hypothyroid, RA, lupus/SLE, MS, heptatitis C/B, coeliac disease, where the tests are negative, but the symptoms persist for 6 months or more, then CFS/ME is suspected. these tests alongside the fairly clearly delinated diagnostic criteria for ME/CFS are used for definitive diagnosis i.e. the 'Oxford criteria' (UK), the ME/CFS definition by the CDC in the US, the Canadian guidlines for Canada etc

    have a look at the ME association and NICE guidelines for diagnostic criteria & eliminatory tests if in the UK. LD has it's own specific tests which are notoriously unreliable dependent on timing and other factors. diagnosis should be by careful and in-depth history taking as well as the tests. it's v. difficult to 'conclusively' diagnose LD as it's so similar to ME/CFS but is treatable with antibiotics. also Docs are generally underinformed on both conditions and often reluctant to actually give a definitive diagnosis.

    Caitlin

  • jackie00198
    jackie00198 shimlad

    Posted

    When I was in your situation I got a complete blood workup. Such a workup will test for many diseases. Then if every blood test is negative, ME/CFS can be considered, since this illness is a diagnosis of exclusion. There are no biomarkers.  A good specialist, like an infectious disease doctor, will have a very good idea if you have this illness. My specialist took one look at my bloodword, which was all negative, asked me several questions, and diagnosed me within about 20 minutes.
Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.