A two-year scientific controversy all but ended Thursday when the prestigious journal Science retracted a study linking a strange virus to chronic fatigue syndrome, a sometimes-debilitating disorder with no known cause.
The journal’s editors “lost confidence” in the study after at least a dozen attempts to replicate the finding failed, editor in chief Bruce Alberts wrote in a retraction notice to be published today. Further, the study’s authors “omitted important information” from the paper, Alberts wrote.
The retraction formally removes the study from the scientific record.
Published in October 2009, the retracted study generated a wave of hope among chronic-fatigue patients that a cause of their illness had finally been found. Between 1 million and 4 million Americans are thought to have chronic fatigue syndrome, a mysterious disorder that causes prolonged and severe fatigue, body aches and other symptoms.
The Washington Post
