Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Causes

What are the root chronic fatigue syndrome causes? For years, researchers struggled to find any sort of rhyme or reason behind this mysterious condition. Their patients were sleeping full eight hour nights, but still woke up feeling foggy and confused. They struggled to make new short-term memories and find the right words when speaking. Any sort of physical exertion would leave them feeling incapacitated. Their joints and muscles ached for no real reason at all. They frequently had headaches. These signs and symptoms could be related to genetics, to nervous system abnormalities, to infections or to psychological factors, doctors surmised at best. Only recently has new evidence suggested another type of cause for this syndrome.

Previously, the causes of chronic fatigue syndrome were believed to have a genetic link. Researchers saw there were genes involved in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the sympathetic nervous system that were altered. These genes control a patient's response to trauma, injury and other stressful events, so the abnormalities discovered could have plausibly affected immune system function, cell communication and cellular energy transfer. Patients with CFS have many different gene differences, but there hasn't been a single gene responsible for the medical symptoms associated with CFS.

For years, one of the suggested chronic fatigue syndrome causes was the presence of a virus or infection, although there was no medical evidence to prove it. Moreover, not all patients showed evidence of infection, although lingering viral infections have been known to cause many of the symptoms of CFS. Over the years, researchers discovered that many CFS patients have elevated levels of antibodies similar to patients with Lyme disease, yeast infections, herpes virus 6, human T cell lymphotropic virus, Epstein-Barr, measles, cytomegalovirus and parvovirus. About 80% of CFS cases begin with a flu-like condition and many instances occur within the same household, although there is no medical evidence to indicate this condition is contagious.

The most recent chronic fatigue syndrome causes are reported to be viral. In October 2009, researchers published a study in the Science Express journal that found two-thirds of patients with chronic fatigue are also infected with a retrovirus called XMRV. Most viruses don't linger long in the body, but a retrovirus -- like HIV or XMRV -- can inhibit genetic material and stick around indefinitely. Some research has found a link between certain types of cancer and this retrovirus as well. For now, it's too soon to say whether this medical news can conclusively say XMRV is the cause of chronic fatigue or not. Even so, some patients say this finding is "the best news ever," says Annette Whittemore of the Whittemore-Peterson Institute. "We've always known there was something out there. Now we see its face," she explains.

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Latest Causes of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
CDC research also points to trouble in the hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis in the brain as one of the potential causes of chronic fatigue syndrome. Physical or emotional stress activates the HPA axis that increases the release of the stress hormone cortisol, dopamine and seratonin, which has a host of effects on the immune system. Doctors who treat patients for fibromyalgia say the same sort of hormonal abnormalities play a part in the mysterious condition they treat too.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Treatments
Since the root cause is so mysterious, many CFS treatments are pharmaceutical in nature so the symptoms can be treated. Sleep aids, muscle relaxants and stimulants are given to help with sleep disorders and fatigue. Antidepressants can help with depression, sleep difficulty and pain.

Chronic Fatigue Symptom
Just recently, researchers uncovered a culprit for CFS, which is the XMRV chronic fatigue retrovirus. While studies are promising, scientists are still looking into the way a retrovirus may be causing the main chronic fatigue symptom of constant exhaustion. Even so, many patients finally feel vindicated that the world is looking at them as though they have a real, serious condition.