Common abbreviations
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Medical abbreviations
BEAM - A kind of brain scan
CBC - complete blood count
CD4, CD8 etc. -- immune cells
CDC -- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (USA agency), responsible for estimating prevalence rates and making epidemiological studies
CEBV -- chronic Epstein-Barr syndrome. Chronic-Fatigue-Syndrome was once thought to be this.
CBT - cognitive behavior therapy
CFS -- chronic fatigue syndrome
CFIDS -- chronic fatigue and immune dysfunction syndrome, a name for Chronic-Fatigue-Syndrome often used in the USA.
CNS -- central nervous system
COQ10 -- co-enzyme Q10, a naturally occuring substance which some patients find helpful; available without prescription
DD -- (slang) the "damned disease", i.e. Chronic-Fatigue-Syndrome
DHEA -- dehydroepiandrosterone, a steroid hormone that some patients find helpful although this medication has risks
DHHS -- Dept. of Health and Human Services (USA agency)
EBV -- Epstein-Barr Virus. See question 2.19 above.
EI -- See MCS
EPD -- enzyme potentiated desensitization; a treatment
FDA -- Food and Drug Adminstration; a USA agency which regulates drug approvals, nutritional supplements, and food quality and labeling
FMS -- fibromyalgia syndrome; quite similar to CFS, many believe it is the same illness, although CFS researcher Dr. Paul Cheney says that FMS patients respond well to programs of graduated exercise, while CFS will suffer a relapse if they follow the same regimen. There's a separate network discussion group for this, FIBROM-L@MITVMA.MIT.EDU or newsgroup alt.med.fibromyalgia.
GWS -- (a.k.a. PGS) = Gulf War Syndrome -- condition noted by USA and other militaty veterans who fought in the 1991 Persian Gulf war. This hasn't been studied enough to clarify that it's one syndrome. Many of the patients, though, exhibit symtpoms indistinguishable from MCS, and MCS treatments have been very successful with these patients (as reported at NIH's workshop on this topic, April '94).
HHV6 -- human herpes virus 6; might be involved in several conditions, including CFS.
HMO -- health maintenance organization (USA); a pre-paid plan which provides comprehensive medical services
HPA -- hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal; this axis controls stress response and many other bodily functions; damage to this has been implicated as a possible cause of CFS.
IVIG -- intravenous gamma globulin; a treatment that some find helpful
MAOI -- monoamine oxidase inhibitors; a class of drugs that some find helpful; several risks
MCS -- multiple chemical sensitivities, also known as EI ( = environmental illness). Very similar to CFS except that in MCS, chemical & fume exposures are a clear trigger that worsen symptoms. Often discussed on the "immune" discussion group (to subscribe, contact immune-request@weber.ucsd.edu
ME -- myalgic encephalomyelitis; the name for CFS used most commonly outside of the USA.
MRI -- magnetic resonance imaging; a kind of brain scan
NIH -- National Institutes of Health (USA agency); largest medical research institution in the world
NK -- natural killer cell, a type of immune cell
NMH -- neurally mediated hypotension, a blood pressure ailment linked to CFS by research in 1995
NSAID -- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; examples: naproxen, ibuprofen; used for pain
PCR -- polymerase chain reaction; a DNA technique used for identifying viruses and other life forms
PET -- a kind of brain scan
PHS -- Public Health Service (USA agency); under the DHHS, the PHS includes NIH, CDC, and SSA
PNI -- psychoneuroimmunology; new field that studies relations between emotions and the immune system
PWC -- person with CFS
PGS -- Persian Gulf Syndrome; see GWS.
PVFS -- post-viral fatigue syndrome; term used in Britain, associated with CFS/ME
SoPWC -- spouse of PWC; significant other of a PWC
SPECT -- a kind of brain scan
SSA -- Social Security Adminstration (USA agency), responsible for retirement and disability benefits
SSDI -- disability benefit program from the SSA (USA)
SSRI -- selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors; examples: Zoloft, Paxil, Prozac; often used to address fatigue, cognitive dysfunction and Depression
T4, T8 etc. -- kinds of immune cells
TCA -- tricyclic anti-depressants; examples: doxepin and amitriptyline; often used for sleep disorder, and muscle and joint pain;
TTT -- tilt table test; used to diagnose neurally mediated hypotension (NMH), a condition that has been linked to CFS
Computer and other common abbreviations
bbiaf -- be back in a few (an IRC term)
brb -- be right back (an IRC term)
btw -- by the way
FAQ - frequently asked question; or, a document that answers frequently asked questions
FTP -- file transfer protocol; a nifty Internet utility for storing/ retrieving files
FWIW -- for whatever it's worth
HTTP -- hypertext transfer protocol; the Internet utility which enables the World Wide Web to link multiple resources together
IAIYH -- "It's all in your head"
IMHO -- in my humble opinion
IRC -- Internet Relay Chat. Live conferences take place on this service. For info, send GET CFS IRC as e-mail to LISTSERV@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU.
LOL -- lots of laughter
OIC -- Oh, I see!
ROTFL -- roll-on-the-floor laughing
TTYL -- talk to you later
URL -- universal resource locator; an Internet term that identifies specificl locations for ftp, http, etc. resources
w.r.t. -- with respect to
:-) -- a "smilie", meaning "meant in jest"; (look at it sideways to see the smilie face)
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