Expert: Suzan Jackson - 10/13/2009

Question
Hi, my name is Genna and I was just browsing allexperts and I saw this Chronic Fatigue Syndrome page. I was actually browsing because I was trying to find the appropriate category to ask a question about my leg pain and that's when I some CFS questions and saw that I have a lot in common with other people asking questions. I am 20 years old and a male. I have had strange leg pains for about 4 years now. They started after I had begun to run daily. I thought it was an overuse issue and stopped running for a time. When I started again the same problem came back. I have now pretty much stopped running because I just can't. I even went to many specialists and got many scans and they told me nothing is wrong and that I should just stretch more. I don't have a car so I bike everywhere. Now I can do that either because my legs feel ripped apart after even a few hundred feet. And not riding my bike for months makes no difference, they still hurt almost right away. Also, my wrists hurt quickly if I use the computer or mouse for a few hours and where my foot and legs meet hurts a lot.

I was reading that some of the symptoms for CFS are also unrefreshing sleep and impaired memory or concentration. and I have these symptoms too. More and more, and it's becoming a concern for me, I can't remember things. I have actually been diagnosed with depression, generalized anxiety, and social anxiety years prior and reading about CFS, I find that these conditions are comorbid. And I have just had a sense of being tired all the time, for years upon years, and I don't know why. I don't want to do anything and get stressed out easily. I thought this was the depression and anxiety but this is making me think again.

One last thing I want to mention, I had a really strong stomach virus for just two days and some months after that (it might have even been half a year) is when I began having leg pain from what I thought was overuse injuries. Do you think this could be CFS or maybe even Fibromyalgia? Thank you.

Answer
Dear Genna -

I'm not really an expert on pain, but I'll do my best to answer your questions.  I've had CFS for 7 years, so that's what I know best.

It is possible that you have CFS, although pain is not typically the primary symptom.  Here's a self-test to help you determine if you might have CFS:

http://www.cfids.org/about-cfids/do-i-have-cfids.asp

And here is some information about the diagnosis and treatment of CFS:

http://www.cfids.org/about-cfids/default.asp

On the diagnosis page, you'll see a long list of other conditions that should be excluded in order to diagnose CFS.  these are other medical conditions that can cause some of the same symptoms as CFS.  Even if your symptoms don't exactly match CFS, you can take this list to your doctor to help him or her decide what else to test you for.

It is quite possible that you have fibromyalgia, but I don't know a lot about it, except that it have some similar characteristics as CFS, with pain as its primary symptom.  My understanding is that the pain of fibromyalgia is normally widespread, rather than just in one part of the body, but it is definitely something you should look into.  Fibromyalgia is diagnosed in part with a physical exam where the doctor tests you for tender points.  For more information on fibromyalgia:

http://www.fmaware.org/site/PageServer

Another possible cause for your leg pain - if it is mainly in your joints (like knees and ankles and hips) is Lyme disease, which also causes many of the same symptoms as CFS.  Your doctor should test you for Lyme, starting with ELISA and Western Blot blood tests.  These tests are prone to false negatives, but it's a good place to start.  For more information:

http://www.ilads.org/lyme_disease/about_lyme.html

I hope these resource will help you on your road to better health.  It can take a lot of persistence to get to the bottom of hard-to-diagnose medical conditions, but it is worth the effort.  Good luck in finding some answers soon -

Sue Jackson
www.livewithcfs.blogspot.com