Dr.
Byron Hyde and Professor Kenny De Meirleir are two of the best-known names
in the field of researching CFS/ME. Dr. Hyde is the director of the
Nightingale Research Foundation located in Ottawa, Canada. His book,
The Clinical and Scientific Basis of Myalgic
Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome remains the most
comprehensive collection of scientific and clinical studies on CFS/ME
ever published.
Professor Kenny De Meirleir is
a professor
of physiology and internal medicine at
the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
in
Belgium. Professor De Meirleir has co-authored more than 80 studies on
CFS/ME. He was also one of the authors of the International Consensus
Criteria, the most accurate case definition for evaluating CFS/ME. Professor De Meirleir's work is based on the premise that the gut wall in
CFS/ME is abnormal, and that bacterial pathogens in the gut must be
treated in order for antivirals or other treatments to be effective.
In
this interview, conducted
in 2008 by Öppna
Kanalen Göteborgs
Webb-TV (a Swedish open-channel station), Dr. Hyde spoke about CNS involvement. His perspective is that CFS/ME is a
form of brain injury. He considers it to be a diffuse injury that
results in an inability to handle physical or mental stress. Once the
brain is injured, the illness affects all body systems. He does not
believe there is a general treatment for CFS/ME. However, he believes
there is a great deal of collateral damage that must be treated on an
individual basis.
Professor De Meirleir spoke about his approach to treating CFS/ME. He
performs normal tests to exclude major diseases, then does a series
of tests for viruses, immune system and digestive system function. He
believes that there is a predisposition to the disease when there is
food intolerance or maldigestion. He considers maldigestion to be a
major stress on the immune system, 80% of which is in the gut. When
another infection occurs, “your bucket flows over and you go into a
state where the immune system never comes to rest.”
In
CFS/ME, Professor De Meirleir treats food intolerance first (with diet).
Then he treats gut dysbiosis (abnormal gut flora) and helps repair
the gut barrier (leaky gut). He says it takes a year to recover gut
function. Professor De MeirLeir also spoke at length about subgroups.
While
this interview was somewhat shortened, there is a wealth of
information here about the possible causes, mechanisms, and
treatments for CFS/ME. Highly recommended.
Original
interview posted on:
Öppna
Kanalen Göteborgs
Webb-TV
More
information:
Nightingale
Research Foundation
Contact information for Prof. De Meirleir
TheClinical and Scientific Basis of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ChronicFatigue Syndrome. Byron A. Hyde, Jay A. Goldstein, P.H. Levine, eds.
Nightingale
Research Foundation (July 1992)