Scientists Discover Blood Test That Can Detect Chronic Fatigue Syndrome With Over 90% Accuracy

Chronic fatigue syndrome is an often debilitating condition which causes excessive fatigue, tiredness and muscle tenderness for a prolonged period of time. Its symptoms get exacerbated as a patient goes through physical or mental strain and the effects don't get any better even with adequate sleep and stress management.

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In a medical breakthrough, scientists claimed that they have developed the world’s first blood test to diagnose myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). There is currently no test for the condition and patients tend to be diagnosed based on symptoms, which means many can go undiagnosed for years.

The lead researcher, Prof Dmitry Pshezhetskiy, from the University of East Anglia (UEA) Norwich Medical School, said, "Our discovery offers the potential for a simple, accurate blood test to help confirm a diagnosis, which could lead to earlier support and more effective management.”

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According to The Guardian, Scientists at University of East Anglia examined blood samples from 47 patients with severe ME/CFS and 61 healthy adults. The team discovered a unique pattern that appears consistently in people with ME/CFS that is not seen in healthy people, enabling them to develop the test.

Writing in the Journal of Translational Medicine, the team of researchers said that the test had a sensitivity – or the likelihood of a test being positive if that patient has the condition – of 92%. It had a specificity – the probability the test will rule out negative cases – of 98%.

Pshezhetskiy further shared, “This is a significant step forward, for the first time, we have a simple blood test that can reliably identify ME/CFS – potentially transforming how we diagnose and manage this complex disease.”

There are no specific diagnostic tools to confirm whether a person suffers from chronic fatigue syndrome. However, doctors can run a battery of tests to strike out the possibility of some other ailment.

Although this condition can strike anyone, including children, it is the individuals who are immunocompromised or have overused antibiotics, that are considered to be most vulnerable.