Neurasthenia - Definition and Overview

Neurasthenia was a term first coined by Beard in 1880 to describe a condition with symptoms of fatigue, anxiety and pessimism. It was explained as being a result of exhaustion of the central nervous system's energy reserves which Beard attributed to civilisation. In the late 1800s it became a popular diagnosis and led to rest cures. It was a common diagnosis in World War I but its use declined a decade later.

See also

• chronic fatigue syndrome
• hypochondriasis
• combat stress reaction

References

• Neuraesthenia revisited: ICD-10 and DSM-III-R psychiatric syndromes in chronic fatigue patients and comparison subjects (http://bjp.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/abstract/167/4/503)
• Chronic fatigue syndrome: a true illness (http://www.kcl.ac.uk/cfs/articles.html)