Treatment of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

1. Why is fatigue so hard to resolve? This is a question people often hear, but the reason fatigue does not improve easily is not that it cannot be treated well; rather, it is because people do not accurately identify the cause of the fatigue and receive treatment without proper evaluation.

As a common example, many people think, "If you are fatigued, your liver is unhealthy." If liver function declines, it is natural to feel tired, but just because you feel fatigued does not mean there is a high likelihood that your liver function is poor. This is because the underlying diseases that cause fatigue are very diverse.

Fatigue tonics are of little help except in special cases. In some cases, the main ingredient of a fatigue tonic is caffeine. Because of caffeine’s stimulating effect, it may provide a brief temporary boost, but it is not a fundamental solution. Therefore, the effect does not last long, and long-term caffeine use can be encouraged, which can in turn create a vicious cycle where the side effects actually cause more fatigue.

2. Treatment of underlying diseases Because fatigue is a symptom that can appear due to various underlying diseases, there is naturally no special principle for treating fatigue itself; the basic principle is to treat the disease that caused the fatigue.

3. Exercise habits Exercise has many health benefits: it lowers blood pressure, raises the level of HDL cholesterol, the so-called good cholesterol, and helps with weight control by consuming energy and reducing body fat. It also helps prevent diabetes and relieve stress. In addition, it improves muscle strength, muscular endurance, joint function, and cardiopulmonary function, so it can help recovery from fatigue and increase work capacity, thereby improving physical and mental well-being.

4. Treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome Since the cause of chronic fatigue syndrome has not yet been identified, there is still no definitive curative treatment, and treatment methods advocated by experts differ somewhat. For that reason, although there are many treatment approaches, there is no common treatment that is effective for all patients. Therefore, at present, the treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome is naturally symptomatic treatment aimed at improving symptoms. In general, treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome may include antidepressant use, mental stability, and multifaceted pain management, and in some cases anti-inflammatory drugs may be helpful.

1. Exercise therapy In the past, it was common practice to advise patients diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome to avoid strenuous physical activity and rest completely. However, recent research findings suggesting that gradual aerobic exercise helps improve symptoms are changing that view. Patients also tend to want to do no exercise at all and simply rest because of severe fatigue symptoms, but this is known to damage muscle condition and may actually worsen fatigue symptoms.

2. Sleep hygiene Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome often complain of sleep-related symptoms. If there are sleep problems, they can cause or worsen fatigue, reduced memory, headaches, or joint pain, so getting good sleep is important. If you have been diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, you should check whether you have accompanying sleep disorders such as sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, circadian rhythm disorder, or persistent daytime sleepiness.

So far, I have explained the treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome. In the next installment, we will finally look at the prevention of chronic fatigue syndrome.

Source: Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, National Health Information Portal