AHMF: 98 Conference: McGregor

Dental Amalgams and CFS

NR McGregor*, RH Dunstan, S Niblet, K King, HL Butt, T Harrison, W Taylor, TK Roberts, IJ Klineberg. - P Clifton-Bligh, G Fulcher, J Dunsmore, L Hoskins.

* Collaborative Pain Research Unit
The University of Newcastle
Australia
- Royal North Shore Hospital CFS Group
Sydney,
Australia

Ninety-eight CFS patients and 81 age- and sex-matched controls were assessed for the changes in symptoms (clinically determined and questionnaire), SCL-90-R psychological responses, blood cell parameters, blood biochemistry and the urinary excretion of organic and amino acids in relationship to their dental amalgam status. There was no difference in the number of dental amalgams per subject, the number of subjects who had their dental amalgams removed and the number of subjects who reported improvement following removal of their amalgams between the CFS patients and the control subjects. No amalgam parameter was associated with CFS. There was no association between increasing numbers of amalgams or amalgam removal and any alterations in the clinical or patient-reported symptoms (prevalence, severity), SCL-90-R psychological responses, blood cell parameters, blood chemistry or urinary excretion of organic and amino acids in either the CFS patients or the control subjects. Those subjects who perceived that they had an improvement in symptom expression following amalgam removal did not have any detectable difference in clinical or patient-reported (prevalence, severity) symptoms, SCL-90-R psychological responses, blood cell parameters, blood chemistry or urinary excretion of organic and amino acids.

No differences in symptom expression or pathology could be detected in either CFS patients or control for any amalgam parameters. No evidence was found that could support the removal of dental amalgam fillings in either CFS patients or control subjects for relieving poly-symptomatic presentation.