The science of craniocervical instability and other spinal issues and their possible connection with ME/CFS - discussion thread

Found this old 2001 paper on Chiari malformation surgery in fibromyalgia and CFS
During the past year neurosurgeons Michael J. Rosner and Dan S. Heffez caused a great deal of excitement in the mass media and on the Internet by suggesting that they found a surgical treatment for fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome.
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In a Wall Street Journal article1 and on a subsequent television broadcast on ABC's 20/20 Friday program, Rosner and Heffez presented preliminary data linking these conditions to the Chiari malformations (protrusion of the brainstem downward against the spinal cord) and cervical myelopathy. In an Internet interview, responding to a question about the extent of symptom relief after surgery in patients with fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome, Heffez replied that "every symptom can be improved to a greater or lesser degree,"2 implying that the surgery was very successful. Unfortunately, no peer-reviewed manuscripts have yet been published that confirm any relationship of Chiari malformation or cervical myelopathy to fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome, nor has anyone yet published any data about the outcomes of patients after surgery.
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Can fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome be cured by surgery?
 
I was communicating with woman who had been given a diagnosis of CFS for 10 years around that time period, she had surgery (she didn't mention the name of her surgeon), and all her CFS symptoms went away. She complained of a lot dizziness. She was dx with Chiari malformation and concluded she never had CFS. She didn't go on for years writing blogs about her recovery from CFS. She moved on.
 
Another paper on this for those interested:

Chiari I malformation as a cause of orthostatic intolerance symptoms: a media myth?​


Abstract​

There is much interest in a putative relationship between Chiari I malformation and symptoms of orthostatic intolerance. It has been reported at scientific meetings that a number of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia have Chiari I malformation, or hindbrain compression in the absence of Chiari, and that they experience improvement after decompression surgery. Many of these patients have symptoms of orthostatic intolerance. A connection between Chiari I malformation and these conditions has been discussed in newspaper articles and on national television programs. Patients have also had access to much information on this topic via the Internet. Unfortunately, the Chiari I malformation and orthostatic intolerance connection is almost entirely unsupported by peer-reviewed literature. The purpose of this article is to provide an objective review of the available information.
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Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11705431/
 
Years ago surgeon Dr. Paolo Zamboni was promoting his "liberation procedure" for pwMS, based on his theory that chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI) caused MS. It was later discredited. There were several news stories. here in Canada about MS patients travelling to Italy for the surgery.
 
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