The Young ME Sufferers Trust www.tymestrust.org April 2005 ====== In Vision : on the new South Australian Government ME/CFS guidelines for GPs ====== Choosing the ‘opathy’ ending (myalgic encephalopathy, rather than myalgic encephalomyelitis as used by the World Health Organisation) the Government of South Australia has published diagnostic and management guidance for GPs. Using much from the Canadian clinical diagnostic criteria - with a useful tick box to aid the process - this document also incorporates the David Bell CFS Disability Scale. Summaries of aetiology etc are generally helpful. The Australian guidelines have ‘been developed, where possible, by achieving consensus between practising clinicians’ and are intended for clinical use (as opposed to research). Chapter 5 of the 2002 Report by the UK Chief Medical Officer’s Working Group on CFS/ME - which The Young ME Sufferers Trust helped to write - recommended that ME in children be diagnosed in 3 months. The Australian guidance sticks to the more traditional 6 months - but no consensus document will please all. However, it is succinct, easily understood, useful, practical for a GP and, in our opinion, more helpful than the RCPCH guideline in several areas. It does not give detailed advice on education, but what there is, is good. You can download Dr Alan Franklin’s excellent guidance for paediatricians at www.tymestrust.org ====== Copyright (c) 2005 The Young ME Sufferers Trust