Zyp Czyk's List: Mitochondria

• Oxygen means  everything for exertion in humans. If you want to be able exercise vigorously you’ve got to get oxygen (and lots of it) into the mitochondria of your muscles.
• Seventy percent of the  CFS and the CFI patients had significantly lower maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max) at anaerobic threshold than the controls.
• the lowest muscle oxygen uptake achieved by the healthy controls at maximal workload was a very low 10 ml/100 mls, a value Vermoulen reported is found in heart failure
• the lowest oxygen uptake by the ‘CFS’ (Fukuda) patients was less  than half that of the worst off control (4.4 ml/100 mls.) o
• the muscles of that patient was receiving about 44% of the oxygen that the poorly functioning healthy control was.
• The sheer size of this study would, one would think, effectively end the question whether metabolic abnormalities thwart energy production during exercise in ME/CFS, or whether deconditioning is a significant factor. 
• Satisfied that metabolic impairment is present, exercise physiologists are moving forward to try and discern its cause.

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• Patient Comments: Mitochondrial Disease - Symptoms

• Pain has a physical, psychologic, spiritual and cultural component. Individuals with mitochondrial disease report pain most commonly in the form of headaches, myalgias and neuropathy, and abdominal or chest pain. Cutaneous pain is also reported in association with Raynaud-like changes, especially in the distal extremities. Impaired function in the central nervous system may also cause pain that may be manifested in a number of different ways including painful myoclonus and spasms; impairment in the spino-thalamo-cortical system appears to be a major cause of central pain (Tanaka, 1997). Chronic pain in mitochondrial disease should be well managed as pain is a significant stressor and has the potential to lead to further decline and lactic acidosis (Ross, 2007).

  Abdominal pain may come from any number of causes including gastroesophageal reflux, gastric distention with delayed gastric emptying, intestinal and/or colonic dysmotility associated with bloating and/or constipation. Urinary retention with bladder distention can also be a cause of discomfort.

  Younger children may have difficulty describing abnormal sensations accurately (like numbness or tingling) and may substitute more familiar terms instead like pain instead (inaccurately).

  Even when the etiology of the pain can be determined and appropriate treatment implemented, the discomfort might not be entirely treatable. The focus should be on minimizing triggering factors (such as anxiety or depression) and developing strategies for managing the pain (e.g., coping mechanisms for dealing with chronic discomfort).