Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Morgellon's Syndrome

In the realm of claimed diseases with little to no evidence to back them up, Morgellons ranks high in it's absolute strangeness. The main symptom of Morgellons syndrome are a series of metallic fibers that pop up under the skin of the affected party. The fibers often cause discomfort and a crawling sensation under the skin, sometimes being bad enough to cause the patient to dig bloody pits in the skin. People suffering from Morgellons can be identified by self inflicted bloody gouges in the skin and rashes caused by intensive scratching. In 2002 a coalition of people self diagnosed with Morgellons petitioned the CDC to do a study on the effects and causes of Morgellons. After intensive study the CDC found there to be no evidence of anything actually wrong with these people who self diagnosed. Despite the findings of the study people continued to keep insisting on it's existence, even founding support groups to help those suffering from the disease. In academic circles, social scientists have tried to figure out just why widespread belief in this disease is still prevalent. The current idea is that these people may be suffering from delusional parasitosis: a psychotic condition that can be treated with anti psychotics. Morgellons is still very real to a lot of people, there is even a Morgellons research foundation where pamphlets and dvds can be bought to educate the masses on Morgellons. The website also takes donations to help fund research on Morgellons, research that was already done by the CDC. The future of Morgellons disease is murky, but people still believe all the same and it looks like their delusions will continue far into the future.
http://www.thecehf.org/morgellons-disease-pictures-images.html
http://time.com/3768710/what-is-morgellons-joni-mitchell/

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