The presence of crimson
crescents in the mouth
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Cunha,
Burke A.; "Crimson Crescents -- A Possible Association With the
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome"; Annals of Internal Medicine 116:4347,
February 15, 1992.
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Burke
A. Cunha, M.D., Chief of the Infectious Disease Division of
Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola, New York, has discovered
arch-shaped, bright red, membrane tissue in the back of CFS patients'
mouths. Located on both inner sides of the mouth next to the back
molars, these "crimson crescents," as Dr. Cunha calls them,
intensify in color as the patient's condition worsens, and fade as the
patient improves.
Dr. Cunha states that the crescents appear in 80 percent of CFS
patients but show up in less than 5 percent of non-CFS patients with
sore throats, and not at all in patients with mononucleosis or strep
throat. He states, "If your patient has crimson crescents, you
now can say his condition is probably chronic fatigue syndrome."
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Findings
and Testimony of Burke A. Cunha, MD., chief, infectious disease
division, Winthrop-University Hospital, Mineola, N.Y., USA.
"But the most consistent lab evidence that we look for are
elevations of coxsackie B-titers and elevations of HHV-6 titers in
combination with the decrease in the percentage of natural killer T
cells," Cunha explained. "If the patient has two or three of
these abnormalities in our study center, then he or she fits the
laboratory criteria for chronic fatigue. Nearly all patients with
crimson crescents have two out of three of these laboratory
abnormalities," he said.
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