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Gulf war syndrome vs "ME/CFS"

Discussion in 'Gulf War Illness' started by InfiniteRubix, Jul 2, 2019.

  1. InfiniteRubix

    InfiniteRubix Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    All

    Having skimmed over contents over the past week, I can't see substantive difference between gulf war syndrome sufferers and being a pwME. I asked this due to its public policy and liability implications.

    Can anyone explain how gulf war syndrome is distinct from ME/CFS?

    I accept that there may be different cohorts who would have alternative diagnoses and that there is even more vaguary than our own diagnostic criteria, but I guess you see where I'm coming from...

    Thanks all, been a while
    :)
     
  2. Cinders66

    Cinders66 Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    I don’t want to offend anyone if I’m wrong on this but
    I have not heard of very severely affected GWS patients, they seem to be more at the walking wounded level, so that would be one difference.
     
  3. InfiniteRubix

    InfiniteRubix Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Very important if true. On the other hand, I'd also wonder whether there are any epidemiological papers that break down problems in prevalence measurements in veteran communities, given that they are habitually let down in society and fall off the grid. Such epidemiological evidence would be proof of nothing, except for adding a known unknown
     
  4. Mij

    Mij Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    I was of the impression that GWS resembles MCS syndrome?

    Do GWS patients experience PEM?
     
  5. InfiniteRubix

    InfiniteRubix Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    At least axiomatically, ME and MCAS seem.to have a relationship, at the very minimum they have shared comorbidities in common methinks. I've never seen so many MCAS conversations before encountering ME tbh.

    Yes, at least some do get PEM according to the literature.

    NB I'd also imagine the Oxford school BPS Wessley types would be just as uninclined to account for PEM properly in GWS, as in the case of pwME. And even less in their/others' interests in the case of GWS perhaps.
     
    Last edited: Jul 2, 2019
  6. adambeyoncelowe

    adambeyoncelowe Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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  7. Trish

    Trish Moderator Staff Member

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    Nancy Klimas is researching both GWS and ME/CFS and says they have distinct biomedical differences. I'm sorry I can't find more about this. Someone else will probably be able to link you to her talking about it.
     
  8. Ravn

    Ravn Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    I think it was Alain Moreau who compared some blood markers (microRNA?) in ME/CFS and GWS and found the pattern to be opposite, elevated in GWS and suppressed in ME/CFS.

    It may have been in this video but can't be sure and not able to rewatch right now, maybe somebody else here has better recall:

    https://mecfsconference.org.au/videos/alain-moreau/
     
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  9. InfiniteRubix

    InfiniteRubix Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Many thanks indeed all
     
  10. rvallee

    rvallee Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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  11. InfiniteRubix

    InfiniteRubix Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Muchos gracias.

    So the only unifying features are merely personalities, economics and politics ;)
     
  12. adambeyoncelowe

    adambeyoncelowe Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    The symptoms do appear to have a lot of overlap. GWI seems to have some kind of PEM, for example, but it seems to be different to our PEM somehow.

    I read something once about the different phenotypes of GWI being due to injury in different parts of the brain (e.g., brain stem alone, brain stem with another area, etc). It may be that the difference is due to where in the brain the illness comes from.
     
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  13. chrisb

    chrisb Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    It must be a great relief to sufferers from GWS that the original "research" establishing the psychosomatic cause of perpetuation of such symptoms was funded by the Army Chemical Corps.
     
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  14. rvallee

    rvallee Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Kinda. Just that it applies to those sabotaging both diseases, not their victims.
     
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  15. InfiniteRubix

    InfiniteRubix Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Thank you - very helpful.

    I do wonder how the PEM differs qualitatively/subjectively, but now that is merely my curiosity rambling. Pointless curiosity now my real Q is answered by the thread :)
     
  16. junkcrap50

    junkcrap50 Established Member (Voting Rights)

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    See this video. About 11:45 she talks about the differences.
    https://forums.phoenixrising.me/threads/discovery-forum-2017-dr-nancy-klimas.61154/
     
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  17. Sly Saint

    Sly Saint Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    https://www.britishlegion.org.uk/do...war_legacy_of_suspicion.pdf?sfvrsn=d8308cc6_2

    eta:
    one thing we have in common is a certain knight of the realm and his 'wisdom'
     
    Last edited: Feb 20, 2020
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  18. InfiniteRubix

    InfiniteRubix Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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