Date sent: Wed, 5 Dec 2001 From: Albert Donnay Subject: CFS by other names... In my play on The Illness and Death of Edgar Allan Poe (presented Monday to a standing room only crowd at the National Library of Medicine that really liked it), I included the following list of all the many names that I have found for the syndrome first named neurasthenia in April 1869, up to the most recent proposal of Chronic Neuroendocrineimmune Dysfunction Syndrome. (I'm sure there are still some I've missed! Please let me know if you know of more). The dates refer to theyear of the earliest (and often only one) published paper I could find that defines the disease. I posted an earlier version of this some years ago. This one is considerably expanded and may be reposted freely provided this text is kept with it and the list is not changed in any way. --Albert Donnay Neurasthenia and its subtypes ============================= 1869 Neurasthenia 1869 Neurasthenia (undifferentiated) 1889 Neurasthenia Praecox 1891 Female Neurasthenia 1893 Syphilitic Neurasthenia 1895 Senile Neurasthenia 1875 Spinal Neurasthenia, AKA Railway Spine 1886 Sexual Neurasthenia 1890 Psychosomatic Neurasthenia c.1900 Neurasthenia Chemicorum c.1900 Angiopathic Neurasthenia c.1900 Cardiovascular Neurasthenia c.1900 Cerebral Neurasthenia c.1900 Neurasthenia Gravis c.1900 Pulsating Neurasthenia 1906 Gastric Neurasthenia 1906 Tropical Neurasthenia 1907 Traumatic Neurasthenia 1907 Endocrine Neurasthenia 1907 Ocular Neurasthenia 1909 Battleship Neurasthenia Alternate Diagnoses Proposed for the Same Syndrome ================================================== 1871 Irritable Heart aka Da Costa's Syndrome 1892 Hyperaesthesia 1895 Anxiety Neurosis 1904 Fibrositis 1904 Phrenasthenia 1906 Psychasthenia 1914 Shell Shock Syndrome 1916 Battle Fatigue, AKA Soldier's Heart 1918 War Neurosis 1930 Heat, Cold and Effort Sensitiveness 1930 Allergic Toxemia 1936 Morbid Industrial Fatigue 1938 Neurocirculatory Asthenia AKA Effort Syndrome 1941 Chronic Fatigue 1945 Allergic Fatigue & Weakness 1950 Epidemic Neuromyasthenia AKA Icelandic Disease AKA Akureyri Fever 1952 Allergy of the Nervous System 1954 Cerebral Allergy 1955 Encephalomyelitis simulating poliomyelitis, AKA Royal Free Hospital Disease 1956 Specific Adaptation Syndrome 1956 Benign Myalgic Encephalomyelitis 1957 Epidemic Postinfectious Neuromyasthenia 1965 Familial Dysautonomia AKA Riley-Day Syndrome 1965 Asthenic Neurosis 1966 Psycho-Vegetative Syndr. 1968 Pseudoneurasthenic Syndr. 1969 Idiopathic Hypogeusia 1973 Ecologic Mental Illness 1974 Epidemic Mass Hysteria 1975 Autonomic Dystonia 1975 * Fibromyalgia 1976 Organic Neurasthenia 1976 Neurasthenic Musculoskeletal Pain Syndrome 1978 Mass Psychogenic Illness 1978 Psychic Possession 1978 Chemical Hypersusceptibility 1980 Neurasthenic Neurosis 1982 Total Allergy Syndrome 1982 Familial Chronic Mononucleosis Syndrome 1983 * Sick Building Syndrome 1984 Chronic Active Epstein Barr Virus Syndrome 1984 Chronic Mononucleosis 1985 20th Century Syndrome 1986 Sporadic Postinfectious Neuromyesthenia 1986 Hypersensitivity Syndrome 1987 Darkroom Disease 1987 * Multiple Chemical Sensitivity 1987 * Chronic Fatigue Syndrome 1988 Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome 1990 Chronic Habitual Hyperventilation Syndrome 1990 3 Types of Asthenia: Episodic, Recurrent and Chronic 1994 Gulf War Syndrome 1996 Iatrogenic Hypochondriasis 1996 Multi-Organ Dysesthesia 1996 Idiopathic Environmental Intolerances 1997 3 Types of Gulf War Syndrome: Impaired Cognition, Confusion Ataxia, and Central Pain 1997 Chronic Pain and Fatigue Syndr. 1998 Toxicant Induced Loss of Tolerance 1998 Chronic Multisymptom Illness 1999 (Poe's) MUSES Syndrome, for Multi-Sensory Sensitivity 2001 Chronic Neuroendocrineimmune Dysfunction Syndrome (this last was proposed by DHHS CFS Name Change Workgroup, which refused to even consider neurasthenia or most of the other names on this list)