Should general practitioners manage chronic fatigue syndrome? A controlled trial

• Register: ISRCTN
• Last refreshed on: 25 November 2019
• Main ID: ISRCTN78372534
• Date of registration: 23/01/2004
• Prospective Registration: No
• Primary sponsor: Record Provided by the NHS R&D 'Time-Limited' National Programme Register - Department of Health (UK)
• Public title: Should general practitioners manage chronic fatigue syndrome? A controlled trial
• Scientific title: Should general practitioners manage chronic fatigue syndrome? A controlled trial
• Date of first enrolment: 01/04/1995
• Target sample size: 0
• Recruitment status: Completed
• URL: http://isrctn.com/ISRCTN78372534
• Study type: Interventional
• Study design: Randomised controlled trial (Other)
• Phase: Not Applicable

Countries of recruitment

United Kingdom

Contacts

• Name: Peter Campion

Key inclusion & exclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: General Practices willing to take part.
Exclusion criteria: Does not meet inclusion criteria

Age minimum:
Age maximum:
Gender: Not Specified

Health Condition(s) or Problem(s) studied

Other symptoms and general pathology
Signs and Symptoms

Intervention(s)

The intervention we attempted to introduce was a form of brief behavioural therapy, offered to GPs as a management package. Control practices were invited to manage their patients as usual, which in many cases included referral to secondary care.

Primary Outcome(s)

The study suffered from both poor recruitment and high drop out. However, we were able to show that this intervention had no effect on the illness of the patients enrolled, and that patients with CFS remained highly disabled over the 12 month study period, whatever their treatment. The study suggests that general practitioners can diagnose CFS, but under the conditions of this study were unable to effectively treat the condition. This accords with the recent Royal Colleges' report, that early recognition in primary care is important, but that the only evidence for effective treatment thus far has come from specialist units. General practitioners do not yet generally have the skills nor the time to provide effective treatment programmes for CFS.

Secondary Outcome(s)

Not provided at time of registration

Secondary ID(s)

PSI06-16

Source(s) of Monetary Support

NHS Primary and Secondary Care Interface National Research and Development Programme (UK)

Ethics review

Status:
Approval date:
Contact:

Not provided at time of registration

Results

• Results available: Yes
• Date Completed: 01/02/1998