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| usually mark a bad spell. The same is true of chronic muscle, joint and connective tissue pain, which has a strange inclination to increase and decrease and migrate from one area of the body to another for no apparent reason. |
| As research into CFS continues, more obscure symptoms have cropped up. Oddly enough, about 80 percent of the people with CFS develop a distinct crimson crescent on the plate in the back of their mouths, much different from strep throat. Even more curious is the loss of fingerprints. According to police investigators, this phenomenon is very rare, yet almost 40 percent of people with CFS have exceptionally smooth fingertips and at least 4 percent cannot even be fingerprinted. (There, is no explanation, but one theory suggests that connective tissue cell deposits inflame the fingertips.) |
| A relatively new finding in many people with CFS is an increase in their urine of a compound tagged CFSUMI, which peaks during infection or muscle or joint pain. Other compounds overly abundant in the urine include the amino acid tyrosine and aconitic and succinic acids. Substances called pro- and beta-alanine increase with indigestion or urinary tract problems. What all this means is still anyone's guess, but hopefully these new findings will increase our understanding of the disorder. |
| CFS Symptoms |
| Primary |
| Fatigue after physical exercise (typically lasting 24 hours) |
| Headache |
| Joint pain (without redness or tenderness) |
| Lymph node swelling (especially under arm or neck) |
| Muscle aches |
| Recurring sore throat |
| Unrefreshing, poor sleep |
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