Kodama, Mitsuo, Kodama, Toshiko · International journal of molecular medicine · 2005
This study describes a treatment approach combining high-dose vitamin C infusions with hormonal supplements (DHEA and cortisol) in patients with interstitial pneumonia, which the authors propose may be related to ME/CFS. Over 9 years, the researchers tracked whether this treatment reduced flare-ups and prevented complications like cancer and depression. The treatment appeared to help reduce active pneumonia symptoms, though it did not prevent long-term scarring of the lungs.
This study is notable because it proposes a direct link between interstitial pneumonia and ME/CFS, suggesting a shared immune and endocrine basis. If validated, it could redirect research toward immune dysregulation and hormonal imbalance in ME/CFS, opening new treatment avenues—though the current evidence remains preliminary and requires rigorous replication.
This study does not prove that megadose vitamin C or DHEA/cortisol infusions are effective ME/CFS treatments, as it lacks randomized controls and blinding. The proposal that interstitial pneumonia and ME/CFS are identical conditions is speculative and unsupported by modern diagnostic criteria or independent replication. The design cannot establish causation or rule out confounding factors in treatment outcomes.
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 →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Kodama, Mitsuo & Kodama, Toshiko (2005). The clinical course of interstitial pneumonia alias chronic fatigue syndrome under the control of megadose vitamin C infusion system with dehydroepiandrosterone-cortisol annex.. International journal of molecular medicine. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15583836/
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-kodama-2005-clinical-course,
author = {Kodama, Mitsuo and Kodama, Toshiko},
title = {The clinical course of interstitial pneumonia alias chronic fatigue syndrome under the control of megadose vitamin C infusion system with dehydroepiandrosterone-cortisol annex.},
journal = {International journal of molecular medicine},
year = {2005},
note = {PubMed: 15583836},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kodama-2005-clinical-course},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kodama-2005-clinical-course
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