CFS is an epidemic. If the nurses are getting it by the thousands, the shortage of nurses may be because of CFS removing nurses from the workforce?
"Long before the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) acknowledged this illness as a national epidemic..."
From Tired All the Time by Ronald L. Hoffman, M.D. - page 211
"Now we are convinced this is a widespread outbreak of an obscure illness."
- Osler's Web by Hillary Johnson- page 227
"..But there are thousands of nurses - thousands. We've stopped counting the number of nurses who have called in saying they have this disease."
Osler's Web by Hillary Johnson- page 463
"This condition, to a lesser or greater degree, affects 20 to 25 percent of the American population. Fortunately, most of these are not severely afflicted, but today vast numbers of our people function at less than half their true potential because of CFS."
Chronic Fatigue Unmasked -Web Page of Dr. Gerald E. Poesnecker
"Seven to ten million Americans suffer from fibromyalgia. It is seen in all age groups from young children to old age, although in most patients, the problem begins in their twenties or thirties. Fibromyalgia affects women much more than men in an approximate ratio of 50 to 1 (Pellgrino, 1989)." - page 11
Reversing Fibromyalgia by Dr. Joe M. Elrod
""...1 American in 50 has fibromyalgia...80-90 percent of patients with the disorder are women....fibromyalgia is more common among Caucasians than among other racial groups..."
Making Sense of Fibromyalgia by Daniel J Wallace, M.D. and Janice Brock Wallace
"Consumers have placed trust in industry and the government to regulate and act prudently to ensure their safety by selling products that are ostensibly safe. This trust is being betrayed as occupational, environmental, and accidental exposures are on the rise. According to the National Academy of Sciences, 37 million Americans suffer from EI. They estimate that as many as 15% of Americans can no longer live comfortably in our postindustrial world." - page 20
"Adhering to the CDC guidelines, the incidence of CFS in the United States is about 11.5%. British and Australian standards for diagnosis are less strict, with 15% of people meeting the British criteria, while Australian criteria yield an incidence of 38%. In 1990 Dr. Hugh Fudenburg, an immunologist noted, "There are at least one million Americans currently carrying a diagnosis of CFIDS, and possibly another five million who are ill and yet to be diagnosed." Estimates are that 60 to 70% of adults who are ill with CFS are women. It is speculated that women are more likely to seek help than men." - page 37
"Research studies show that about 2% of the population is afflicted with fibromyalgia..." - page 44
The Rebellious Body, Reclaim Your Life from Environmental Illness or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome by Janice Strubbe Wittenberg, R.N.
"Research Provides More Evidence That Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Is A Legitimate Medical Condition
"Researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center have found that chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) may be rooted in distinct neurological abnormalities that can be medically tested. Although the sample studied was small, this research provides objective, physiological evidence that the controversial disorder can be considered a legitimate medical condition....
"The Georgetown study, published in the November edition of the BMC Neurology Journal, an online publication, reveals that patients diagnosed with CFS and its family of illnesses have a set of proteins in their spinal cord fluid that were not detected in healthy individuals. These proteins might give insight into the causes of CFS and could someday be used as markers to diagnose patients with the disorder.
""For years, patients with chronic fatigue syndrome have suffered from painful symptoms for which there is no blood test, diagnosable physical condition or any method for doctors to measure improvement," said James Baraniuk, MD, assistant professor of medicine at Georgetown University Medical Center and first author on the study. "Our research provides initial evidence that chronic fatigue syndrome and its family of illnesses may be legitimate, neurological diseases and that at least part of the pathology involves the central nervous system."
"The disorder is characterized by profound fatigue that is not improved by bed rest and that may get worse with physical or mental activity, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Persons with CFS usually function at a lower level of activity than they were capable of before the onset of illness, feeling too tired to perform normal activities or easily exhausted with no apparent reason. Patients also report various nonspecific symptoms, including weakness, muscle pain, impaired memory and/or mental concentration, insomnia and post-exertional fatigue lasting more than 24 hours.
"The study looked at 50 individuals suffering from at least two disorders related to CFS, including fibromyalgia and Gulf War syndrome. By examining spinal cord fluid in patients with CFS and in healthy individuals, the researchers found that CFS patients have 16 proteins that healthy individuals do not. Five of these 16 proteins are found in all patients with the illnesses but in none of the controls. The results indicate that those 16 proteins could possibly serve as a "biosignature" for the disease and could someday be used to diagnose CFS."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/01/060110013424.htm