OCTOBER 8 • 2020 | 37
for Chronic
Fatigue Sufferers
Psychiatrist pens book that suggests ADHD medications.
ELIZABETH KATZ CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Health
M
any people pre-coronavirus
pandemic were used to going at
a nonstop pace, bustling to and
from work and/or school, getting involved
in religious and social activities as well as
jumping the daily hurdles that life inevita-
bly throws a person’
s way.
Some people, however, have a very diffi-
cult time dealing with every-
day stress, often finding it chal-
lenging to get out of bed. Not
only do they live with unre-
lenting fatigue not ameliorated
by 10-12 hours of sleep, they
feel emotionally overwhelmed
and deal with brain fog. They
also may have physical pain that could be
linked to fibromyalgia, temporomandibular
joint dysfunction (TMJ) and migraine.
Joel L. Young, M.D., founder and direc-
tor of the Rochester Center for Behavioral
Medicine, who has done studies in Myalgic
Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome (ME/CFS), has a message for
these individuals:
“To patients with ME/CFS, I know you’
re
out there, and I know you need help,
” he
said. “We get how much you suffer. You
deserve better than what you’
ve gotten.
”
Young, who has conducted research into
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for approxi-
mately 30 years, has recently published a
book titled Understanding and Treating
Chronic Fatigue: A Practical Guide for
Patients and Practitioners. The book was
published by Praeger Press and sells for
$39. It is available in hardcover and in elec-
tronic book format on Amazon and from
Praeger.
Young, a member of Temple Israel, said
the term Chronic Fatigue Syndrome was
established in the 1990s and is considered
an “orphan disease” since no medical spe-
cialties have claimed ownership in treating
the condition. People of any age can devel-
op CFS, although the age range is typically
people in their 30s to 50s. Women are more
commonly diagnosed with the syndrome
than men.
“Often patients with ME/CFS feel a bit
abandoned or diminished or marginal-
ized,
” he said. “Here’
s where I get involved.
I’
ve been interested in ADHD and have
been the principal investigator in over 100
clinical trials. I recognize that some of the
medicines that we use to treat ADHD spe-
cifically addressed many of the symptoms
of ME/CFS.
”
LINK TO ADHD?
Young has developed the hypothesis that
many of the people who have symptoms of
ME/CFS may have what could be consid-
ered “
ADHD inattentive type” as they get
older. Essentially, their ADHD symptoms
have manifested themselves as fatigue, he
said.
Building on that concept, Young
obtained independent funding and pub-
lished a study in 2012 in the journal
Psychiatry Research about the effects of
LDX (lisdexamphentamine) — also known
commercially as Vyvanse — on those with
ME/CFS. Vyvanse has been approved
by the FDA to treat ADHD as well as
binge-eating disorder, although not specifi-
cally for ME/CFS.
“We found that patients with ME/CFS
who were treated with LDX have far less
fatigue and pain than those treated with
placebo,
” he said. “That was published in
the academic journal. The book was a way
of connecting more to patients with their
problem. I hope my book will spur more
studies. Good ideas have to be met with
skepticism, and they have to be replicated
… with multi-site studies.
”
Young said he will also open a new clin-
ical trial sometime in the fall, hopefully
recruiting 50 patients to test the efficacy
of the drug Sunosi (solriamfetol), which is
prescribed for excessive daytime sleepiness
Joel L.
Young, M.D
continued on page 38
New Hope