The Norwegian ME Association donated on May 12th funds for two research projects. One of the research projects is by Fluge, Mella and their team. They want to try and find more objective ways to measure changes in patients enrolled in clinical trials by continuous measurement of physical activity. The have received 100 000 NOK (8800 GBP, 11000 USD, 10200 EUR) for a pilot study which will monitor the activity of 15-20 ME patients over a period of 6 months. The goal is to make a foundation for continuous registration of physical activity levels as possible end points for new randomised trials. The other research project which received support is by prof. Kristian Sommerfelt. He is a a paediatrician and neurologist working at the children's ward at Haukeland university hospital. He received 250 000 NOK (22000 GBP, 28000 USD, 25000 EUR) to start a project which will follow the clinical development and metabolic parameters in children and adolescents with ME from the ward. The study will include approximately 45 patients who developed ME before turning 15 years and 50 patients who previously have received an ME diagnosis. Blood tests will be added to Haukeland's biobank. Here are video greetings from the researchers where they give a short explanation of the projects (in Norwegian). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=io_BT6a0i6o Here is an article from the Norwegian ME Association about the projects Tildeling av forskningsmidler fra ME-foreningens innsamlingsaksjon "ME-forskning" 2019
That's two really useful projects, covering ground that we have been talking about here on S4ME lately - continuous monitoring of physical activity and disease course in young people with ME. Good on the Norwegian ME Association for making great use of a relatively small amount of funding.