A patient information leaflet, from The Little Surgery, Stamford, UK
Have I got Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?

How common is chronic fatigue?
Definition of the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Criteria for diagnosis
Common symptoms
Other medical problems which cause fatigue
Sources of help

How common is chronic fatigue?

 Feeling tired is common. One in five men, and one in three women will say they feel tired most of the time. If you work long hours, have family problems, and are suffering from stress, it is quite common to feel tired. However, only a few people really have the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Another name for the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is Myalgic Encephalitis (or ME for short).

Definition of the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

 CFS is defined as -
"Severe disabling fatigue which lasts at least 6 months, made worse by minimal physical or mental exertion, and for which there is no adequate medical explanation."

Criteria for diagnosis

 Here are guidelines for diagnosing Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

  • A feeling of fatigue (severe tiredness) is the main symptom
  • There is a definite time when it began, and not a lifelong feeling of tiredness
  • Fatigue is severe, disabling, and affects your physical and mental function
  • Fatigue should persist for 6 months or more, and be present 50% of the time
  • Other symptoms often occur, especially myalgia (muscle aches), mood and sleep disturbance, can occur - but fatigue is the main symptom
  • There should be no other medical reason for fatigue (no heart problems, chest problems, or other medical problems which cause fatigue)

Common Symptoms

 An overwhelming feeling of tiredness is the main symptom. This varies from day to day, but is present more than half the time. The tiredness is so disabling, as to make it impossible to continue normal physical and mental activities.

Other common symptoms are as follows

  • muscle aches and pains, especially after physical exertion
  • feeling depressed and emotional
  • poor sleep, difficulty getting off to sleep, frequent wakings, and not feeling refreshed after sleep
  • nausea and loss of appetite
  • a recurrent sore throat, feeling of enlarged glands in the neck which come and go
  • running a slightly high temperature for no apparent reason
  • feeling of faintness and dizziness

Other medical problems which cause fatigue

 There is no simple blood test for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and there are many other conditions which can cause a feeling of tiredness. It is important to make sure that no other medical problems exist, which could be cured by the right treatment.

Here are some common illnesses which can make you feel very tired

  • recovering from glandular fever, or another viral illness
  • anaemia - common in women with heavy periods - can be checked by a blood test
  • low thyroid gland function - can be detected by a simple blood test
  • depression - can be treated very sucessfully with tablets
  • chest problems, eg. severe asthma, chronic lung disease, TB
  • heart disease, eg. heart failure
  • uncontrolled diabetes - can be detected by urine and blood tests
There are numerous medical conditions which can cause tiredness, and anyone who thinks they are suffering form Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, or ME, should discuss their symptoms with their family doctor.

Sources of help

 The ME Association
Stanhope House, High Street, Stanford le Hope, Essex, UK.
SS17 OHA Tel (01375) 642466 or (01375) 361013
Web site
Provides information, support and advice. Leaflets and books are available.

The National M.E. Centre and Centre for Fatigue Syndromes
Disablement Services Centre, Harold Wood Hospital, Harold Wood, Romford, Essex, UK. RM3 OBE Tel (01708) 378050
Information packs, general advice, support, self-help groups, and treatment programs.

Mental Health Net: Self-help Chronic Fatigue Resources
An American site with a listing of chronic fatigue syndrome information and self-help resources online.

UK ME-Web List of links to help sites and personal pages

Action for M.E. UK organisation for sufferers and for carers.

Deborah Shearer's ME pages
to join her ME BBS and mailing list.

Co-Cure runs an informational mailing list for CFS and fibromyalgia sufferers.

CFS-News produces an E-mail newsletter.

This leaflet was written by Dr Livingstone, Little Surgery, Stamford, UK.
It is intended for British NHS patients.
You may print this out and copy it for your own information.
The information in this leaflet is accurate to the best of my knowledge. It is not intended to replace proper medical advice and consultation. If you have medical problems you should consult your own doctor.
Return to The Little Surgery information leaflets page.
All comments, compliments and complaints to the web-weaver
Dr Ruth Livingstone at ruth.livingstone@ukonline.co.uk