Nation IN BRIEF : ILLINOIS : New Drug Eases Ills of Chronic Fatigue

A new drug has been proven to relieve the extreme tiredness, memory loss and other miseries of chronic fatigue syndrome, researchers said. Dr. William A. Carter of Hahnemann University in Philadelphia, co-inventor of Ampligen, presented the findings at an American Society for Microbiology meeting in Chicago. He said that in trials of the antiviral medicine, people incapacitated by what was once called “yuppie flu,” regained enough strength to get out of bed and resume everyday tasks. They also got relief from the memory loss and impaired concentration that go with the syndrome. Other symptoms are headaches and pain in the joints. Although some study subjects had lingering symptoms, the injections were the first successful treatment of the ailment, which afflicts an estimated 2 million to 5 million Americans. Ampligen is made by HEM Pharmaceuticals in Rockville, Md.