Summary

The scientist discovered that people diagnosed with the condition improved with a placebo only 19.6 percent of the time; that's even lower than the 30 percent rate typically seen with other health issues. Many experts had expected the chronic fatigue rate to approach 50 percent.

The results bring renewed vigor to the debate among medical experts as to whether chronic fatigue syndrome is mostly a psychological or a physical issue. Before this latest study, many experts had assumed the condition was; well, mostly in a patient's head.

Original source:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/03/050322120639.htm

Details

• Contrary to conventional wisdom, patients with chronic fatigue syndrome respond to placebos at a lower rate than people with many other illnesses, according to the first systematic review of the topic.
• According to the new analysis by Dr. Hyong Jin Cho of King's College London and colleagues, 19.6 percent of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome improved after receiving inactive treatments, compared with a widely accepted figure of about 30 percent for other conditions.
• Because the placebo effect seems to be strongest in diseases with highly subjective symptoms, some medical professionals believed it could be as high as 50 percent among CFS patients.
• Alternatively, disconnects between how patients and doctors view the illness "may impede development of a collaborative therapeutic relationship," reviewers suggest.
• The study also showed that the placebo response is 24 percent for medical interventions but only 14 percent for psychiatric/psychological treatments.
• The authors say the reason may be that many CFS sufferers seen in specialist settings or self-help groups "have a firm conviction that their illness is of physical origin" and thus would have little faith in psychiatric/psychological treatments.
• According to the review, behavioral therapy and graded exercise therapy have benefits, and if patients were more aware of them, says Cho, they might be "more open, more optimistic, and more collaborative with the professionals, and the overall outcome of the treatments could be enhanced."
• This is true in part, she says, because there is a great deal of variation among patients diagnosed with CFS, and Bateman believes that ultimately CFS may be found to involve more than one disease.
• In the absence of a cure, Bateman has found that the most effective treatment for CFS combines improving symptoms with medication, helping patients retain physical conditioning when possible and using psychological and psychiatric interventions to help patients adapt to living with chronic illness.

Related Articles

Popular Topics: Chronic fatigue, Chronic fatigue syndrome, Placebo, Diabetes, Breast cancer, Prostate cancer, Heart disease, Depression, High cholesterol, Osteoporosis, Vaccines, Autism, ADHD, Infertility, Weight loss, Cancer, Alzheimer's, Trans fats, Acrylamides, Fluoride, Mercury	Take Action: Support NaturalNews.com Email this article to a friend Share this article on: NewsVine | digg | del.icio.us Permalink to this article: http://www.NaturalNews.com/006625_chronic_fatigue_chronic_fatigue_syndrome_placebo.html Reprinting this article: Non-commercial use OK, cite NaturalNews.com with clickable link. <a href = "http://www.NaturalNews.com/006625_chronic_fatigue_chronic_fatigue_syndrome_placebo.html">Debate over chronic fatigue syndrome heats up; new study gives evidence the condition may not be mostly psychological</a>
Receive our Natural Health Newsletter for FREE Subscribe now (it's free!) to win. We randomly choose a subscriber each month to send $100 in eco-home products or a RealGoods.com gift certificate (our choice). Plus, you'll receive FREE news, articles and action alerts from NaturalNews.com editors and join over 800,000 monthly readers who report extraordinary health improvements after becoming a subscriber! Receive breaking news alerts on natural health solutions, renewable energy, the environment, global warming and more. Receive a free instant download of our $29 Secret Sources guide that reveals top sources for little-known health and diet solutions.	Your Email Address: Free Subscription Code: Enter the numbers you see: 100% free of charge. Unsubscribe anytime. Absolutely no spam. We respect your email privacy.
Recommended Special Report: Seven Words that can Change the World by Joseph R. Simonetta Read this special report now... "Seven Words That Can Change the World reveals the astonishing, simple truths that have the power to forever transform our world for the better while freeing our minds from the enslavement of limiting beliefs. This is not a text for the simple-minded; it is a guiding philosophy for the mindful, intelligent few who are wise enough to seek out -- and recognize -- the higher simplicities of truly purposeful living." - Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, editor of NaturalNews.com	More on NaturalNews.com: • Streaming Health Ranger Videos • CounterThink Cartoons • FREE Special Reports • Podcasts