1. Assessment of a retrovirus sequence and other possible risk factors for the chronic fatigue syndrome in adults
- Author
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Khan, Ali S., Heneine, Walid M., Chapman, Louisa E., Gary, Howard E., Jr., Woods, Toni C., Folks, Thomas M., and Schonberger, Lawrence B.
- Subjects
Chronic fatigue syndrome -- Risk factors ,HTLV-II (Virus) -- Health aspects ,Retroviruses -- Health aspects ,Health - Abstract
* Objective.. To assess whether the human T-lymphotropic tropic virus type II (HTLV-II) gag gene sequence, a purportedly new laboratory marker of the chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), and other possible risk factors for CFS, particularly those associated with retroviral transmission, are associated with well-characterized CFS. * Design., Two matched case-control studies. * Setting., The metropolitan Atlanta area. * Patients.. Twenty-one Patients with CFS who were identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CFS surveillance system; 21 CDC employee controls (laboratory study) and 42 neighborhood controls (risk-factor study) who were matched to patients by age, race, and gender. * Measurements.. Peripheral blood lymphocytes and leukocytes were assayed for the HTLV-II gag gene sequence by polymerase chain reaction and specific Southern blot hybridization. Questionnaires elicited demographic and clinical information and a history of exposures associated with retrovirus transmission (for example, blood transfusions, sexual practices, intravenous drug use). * Results., All patients were white and 86% were female. The median age at illness onset was n years (range, 16 to 51 years). The HTLV-II gag gene sequence was not identified in the blood of any patient or control under conditions in which the appropriate assay controls were positive. No statistical differences were observed between patients and controls in frequency of blood transfusions (10% compared with 7%), median number of sex partners before illness (3 compared with 3), bisexual or homosexual behavior (14% compared with 7%), intravenous drug use (0% compared with 0%), and other factors associated with retroviral infection. * Conclusions.. The HTLV-II gag gene sequence was not a marker for CFS in this small study of well-defined patients, nor did other characteristics of the patients and controls support the hypothesis that a retrovirus, transmitted by usual modes, was a cause of CFS., Human T-lymphotropic virus type II (HTLV-II), a type of retrovirus, may not cause chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). CFS is a disorder characterized by chronic lethargy and fatigue. A study compared the occurrence of the HTLV-II gag gene sequence, an alleged laboratory marker for HTLV-II infection, in the blood of 21 patients with CFS to that among 63 healthy individuals. The HTLV-II gag gene sequence was not detected in the blood of the patients with CFS or any of the healthy individuals. The prevalence of risk factors for retrovirus infection was not higher among patients with CFS than among individuals without CFS. Risk factors for retrovirus infection include blood transfusions, an increased number of sexual partners, bisexual or homosexual behavior and intravenous drug use. Patients were more likely to have a family member or roommate suffering from CFS or to have a history of allergies than individuals without CFS.
- Published
- 1993