Talking Point

President’s Report (March 2002)
Paul Leverenz reports on the current state of the Society.

Letters to the Editor

CFIDS Association: Immunological symposium consensus statement
Reprinted with permission from the CFIDS Association of America.

Immune system dysfunction may play key role in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Reprinted with permission from the CFIDS Association of America.

Handy Hints: getting rid of mould
By Catherine McIver. This article first appeared in Sensitivity Matters No. 28, June 2001, published by the Allergy and Environmental Sensitivity and Research Association. Used with permission.

Reflections on recovery
By Val Rubie. Reprinted from Interaction Issue 39, September 2001, and publication of Action for ME. Used with permission.

’Well-being’ and being well
By Joy Stevenson. Reprinted from Emerge Summer 2001, page 21. Emerge is the quarterly journal of the ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Society of Victoria. Used with permission.

Special Feature: UK Report

UK Guidelines released by Chief Medical Officer
Comment by the Editors of Talking Point.

UK Guidelines: response by Moira Smith
This article was reprinted from this page on Moira Smith’s Canberra FM and CFS pages.

UK Guidelines: response by Action for ME
By Brian Dow, Press and Campaigns Manager for Action for ME. Reprinted with permission.

UK Guidelines: responses by ME Association
Reprinted with permission from the ME Association.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: a step towards agreement
This article originally appeared in The Lancet, Volume 359, Number 9301 (January 12, 2002). Used with permission.

Caring for patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: conclusions in CMO’s report are shaped by anecdote not evidence
By Stephen E Straus, Chief, Laboratory of Clinical Investigation, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. This article originally appeared in the BMJ, Volume 324, January 19, 2002. Used with permission.

Recognising chronic fatigue is key to improving outcomes
By Lynn Eaton. This article originally appeared in the BMJ, Volume 324, January 19, 2002, page 131. Used with permission.

25% ME Group response to BMJ
A reply to BMJ regarding the Working Party Report. By Simon Lawrence, Coordinator of The 25% ME Group.

Campaigner welcomes Government u-turn
A long-serving campaigner and fundraiser for a disease dismissed as being “all in the mind” has welcomed a Government report which finally accepts it as a condition that demands serious consideration.

The onset of CFS
By Dr David S Bell. © Bell, Pollard & Robinson, 2000-l. Reprinted from Lyndonville News Volume 3. Issue 4, July 2001. Used with permission

Follow-up survey of Lyndonville Children: most report at least partial recovery from CFS symptoms
By Mark Giuliucci. This article originally appeared in Research Review Summer 2001, a part of the CFIDS Association of America.

ME/CFS/PVFS: what should we call this illness and how should it be defined?
A personal view by Dr Charles Shepherd, 2001. Reprinted from Perspectives Issue 82, Winter 2001, Journal of the ME Association. Reprinted with permission.

Recently published study briefs: as indexed in the public domain by Pub Med
From Pub Med.

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Serotonin in Chronic Faituge Syndrome and Fibromyalgia
By Melvyn R Welch. Source: Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients November 2001, page 140. Used with permission.

Fact Sheet: Laboratory and Clinical Differences between CFS and Depression
By Eleanor Stein MD FRCP(C). Presented at the 3rdAHMF International Meeting on CFS December 1/2 2001, Sydney, Australia. See the Alison Hunter Memorial Foundation Web site for meeting abstracts.

Poem: ‘Two Days in a Row’
By Brian Caire.

Awareness Day

Badge Day

ME/CFS Awareness Evening and Expo

Vale – Tracey Ash
By Glenn and Sandra Ash.

Items available from the Society

Adelaide Bank Charitable Foundation donation
The Society was blessed to receive a donation of $5300 from the Adelaide Bank Charitable Foundation.

Healthy research subjects needed
Health research subjects are needed for a SPECT Scan pilot study, run by Dr Rey Casse.

Recipe Corner
Bircher Muesli; Lentil and Bean Vegetable Soup; Indonesian Stir-Fry; Rice with Yoghurt.

Support Groups

What is ME/CFS?