A study to understand the causes of chronic fatigue

Scientists have discovered that the way the immune system responds to a health problem in some people may indicate why a complex disorder is called chronic fatigue syndrome.

Chronic fatigue syndrome is a serious symptom of long-term physical and mental fatigue and affects up to 17 million people worldwide and about 25,000 people in Britain.

The injured person is often bedridden and unable to start daily activities such as washing and feeding. Researchers used a drug called interferon alpha to create a symptomatic pattern, and found that a patient whose immune response was too effective or exaggerated was more likely to develop intense fatigue.

"For the first time, people prone to a condition like Chronic Fatigue Syndrome have a hyperactive immune system before and during a challenge to the immune system," said Alice Russell of the London Institute of Psychiatry and Neuroscience of the King's Middle School.