Sophia Mirza
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Sophia Mirza (1974–2006) was the first person in the United Kingdom whose cause of death was recorded as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). On Tuesday, June 13th 2006 a coroner "...of Brighton and Hove Coroners Court, UK, recorded the cause of death of a 32-year-old woman as acute anuric renal failure (failure to produce urine) due to dehydration as a result of CFS." First official UK death from chronic fatigue syndrome - New Scientist.
[edit] Inquest
Mirza's spinal cord showed the inflammation common amongst CFS sufferers. Dr Dominic O'Donovan, a neuropathologist at Oldchurch Hospital in Romford, United Kingdom, who examined Mirza's spinal cord as part of the inquest into her death "...reported that the spinal cord looked normal but that he had found that 4 out of 5 dorsal root ganglia were abnormal and showed disease." The Inquest into the Death of Sophia Mirza - Invest in ME.
Abhijit Chaudhuri, a consultant neurologist at the Essex Centre of Neurological Science, claimed the inquest was rigorous and that other causes of death, including sleep apnoea and drug use, were discussed and discounted. Drug use in the preceding two years before death would have rendered the diagnosis of CFS inaccurate. However the inquest establish that if Mirza "...had ever taken such drugs it was 7 or 8 years before she became ill and was therefore irrelevant."
[edit] Implications
Controversy as to whether CFS is a neurological, immunological or psychological condition persists. Groups such as Invest in ME and the ME Association say the coroner's ruling shows that CFS is a neurological condition.
