* Children with ME may have signs of a chronic inflammatory disorder.
* ME could result from a continuing challenge to the immune system, such as
a persistent viral infection.
* Study findings could become the basis for future treatment interventions.

Three years ago on 11 January, the Report of the Chief Medical Officer's
Working Group on CFS/ME stated that research in children with ME was an
urgent priority. This is the first biomedical study in children.

Two ME charities, MERGE and The Young ME Sufferers Trust are delighted to
announce a unique study into biochemical markers in children with ME. The
investigation will be based in the Vascular Diseases Research Unit at the
University of Dundee. Funding for this study has been provided by MERGE (the
ME Research Group) and The Young ME Sufferers Trust (the Tymes Trust) in
conjunction with the Scottish charity 'Search ME'.

ME and CHILDREN

ME (also called ME/CFS) is a disabling condition of unproven cause affecting
all age groups, but it represents a substantial and widespread problem in
the young. Estimates vary but there are probably around 20,000 children with
ME in the UK alone, yet some doctors still refuse to recognise the problem,
let alone investigate it. Attitudes are changing, however, and in a recent
report, the UK Chief Medical Officer highlighted the fact that research in
children with ME was an urgent priority.

The scientific study of ME in adults is sparse given the extent of the
problem, but in terms of children it is almost non-existent. MERGE and The
Young ME Sufferers Trust believe that work in this area is crucial, as
studies suggest that ME is the commonest cause of long-term sickness absence
from school in previously fit children.

THE STUDY

Title: An Investigation into Biochemical and Blood Flow Aspects of ME/CFS in
Children
Researchers:
The study will be under the direction of Dr Gwen Kennedy
(Research Fellow) and Professor Jill J F Belch (Professor of Vascular
Medicine) at the Vascular Diseases Research Unit, University Department of
Medicine, Ninewells Hospital Medical School, Dundee DD1 9SY. In the past 15
years, this research group has published more than 250 peer-reviewed
scientific papers relating to inflammation and vascular disease, and over
the past 4 years has been investigating ME/CFS in adults. The study on
children is an extension of this work on adults.

Background and Aim:
Previous work by these researchers, using sophisticated vascular imaging
techniques, has shown biochemical abnormalities in the circulation of adult
ME patients, suggesting that ME might result from a continuing challenge to
the immune system, such as a persistent viral infection.

The aim of the newly-funded study is to investigate a group of children
with well-defined ME/CFS (in whom there is the possibility of long-lasting
chronic ill-health) to see - for the first time - if similar biochemical
abnormalities exist as those already observed in adults with ME. If they do,
children with ME/CFS may have signs of a chronic inflammatory disorder
associated with increased risk factors for cardiovascular disease, but
encouragingly, the findings might become the basis for future treatment
interventions.

UNIQUE

This study is unique in that it is the first to investigate biomedical
markers in children with CFS/ME and fits in well with the UK Chief Medical
Officer's call in 2002 for further research in this field.

EXPERIMENTS

The study will recruit 25 children with well-defined ME/CFS along with 25
age- and gender-matched 'control' children. Each child will have a) A
medical examination; b) Blood tests consisting of a standard full blood
count, measurements of oxidative stress (eg oxLDL and plasma isoprostanes in
the blood), cholesterol measurements (HDL, LDL & trigclycerides); C-reactive
protein (an indicator of inflammation will be measured by a high sensitivity
ELISA) and apoptosis measurements. In addition, blood flow responses to
aceetylcholine will be measured using a scanning laser Doppler imager.

TIMESCALE

Recruitment for the study will begin in the Spring of 2005, and results
should be available about 18 months afterwards.
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Charity details:
MERGE www.meresearch.org.uk/index.html
The Gateway, North Methven St, Perth PH1 5PP