Davenport, Todd E, Ward, Michael K, Stevens, Staci R et al. · Work (Reading, Mass.) · 2020 · DOI
This study followed one woman with ME/CFS who received regular intravenous saline (salt water) infusions over about 2 years. Researchers measured how her heart and lungs responded to exercise tests throughout the treatment. By the end, she recovered faster after exercise, could do more daily activities, and her heart responded better during physical exertion.
ME/CFS patients often experience chronotropic intolerance (abnormal heart rate responses to activity), which severely limits daily functioning. This case suggests IV saline treatment may help improve cardiovascular function and reduce post-exertional malaise, potentially offering a supportive therapeutic approach worth investigating further in controlled clinical trials.
This is a single case study and cannot establish that IV saline causes the observed improvements—other factors (placebo effect, natural variation, concurrent lifestyle changes) could explain the results. It does not prove effectiveness in other ME/CFS patients, nor does it establish optimal dosing, patient selection criteria, or long-term safety. Formal randomized controlled trials are needed to validate these preliminary observations.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
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