Devlikamova, F I, Safina, D R · Zhurnal nevrologii i psikhiatrii imeni S.S. Korsakova · 2025 · DOI
This review combined results from 11 studies testing a medication called fonturacetam (also known as Actitropil) in people with asthenia—a medical term for persistent exhaustion and lack of energy. After one month of treatment at 200 mg daily, patients reported significantly less fatigue, with improvements also seen in sleep, mood, thinking ability, and overall quality of life. About 5.5% of patients experienced mild, temporary side effects that went away within a week.
While this study examines asthenia broadly rather than ME/CFS specifically, fatigue management is a central challenge for ME/CFS patients who often experience debilitating exhaustion unresponsive to standard treatments. Understanding pharmacological approaches to fatigue reduction—particularly those with favorable safety profiles—may inform treatment discussions for ME/CFS-related fatigue and asthenia.
This meta-analysis does not establish that fonturacetam is effective for ME/CFS specifically, as the included studies appear to examine asthenia more broadly (which has different diagnostic criteria and etiology). The study does not clarify mechanistic pathways or identify which subgroups of asthenic patients benefit most. It also does not compare fonturacetam to standard fatigue management approaches or placebo in a controlled design.
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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