Investigating Morgellons Syndrome

Symptoms

The initial symptoms of Morgellons are the appearance of hard to heal skin lesions or painful itchy rashes which noticeably discolour the skin. Within the lesions, or sometimes protruding from unbroken skin, are fibres of various colours (blue, red, black, white). These fibres often cause pain when removal is attempted and are described as possessing other unusual properties, such as auto fluorescence and resistance to high temperatures. Virginia Savely, a nurse-practitioner, originally from Texas but now working in California has dealt with Morgellons sufferers for some time and first identified blue and white fibres in the lesions of her patients in 2002.

As well as fibres, Morgellons sufferers have variously reported black specks, or granules being emitted by the skin surface, as well as a form of oil. Complicating matters is the fact that Savely, Leitao & Stricker (2006), in one of the only scholarly papers on Morgellons, report that sufferers may in fact not display any skin surface problems at all, they write;

“Some patients have no observable skin lesions and have intact skin, with skin sensations and fibrous, granular, or black material being the only apparent indicators of the disease.”

The skin sensations they refer to are feelings of movement under the skin, commonly likened to bugs, or insects. It is this aspect of Morgellons that has led to many patients being diagnosed as siffering from the rare psychological condition Delusional Parasitosis, which causes sufferers to believe that their skin is infested with insects.

A further common symptom is that of fatigue. The overwhelming majority of Morgellons sufferers report that the condition brings with it unshakeable fatigue and that, along with the neurological symptoms described below, makes it difficult to maintain a normal life - to go to work, to do regular household chores, take exercise and so on.

Despite the original focus of Morgellons falling exclusively on the skin complaints it soon emerged that there were other symptoms of even greater concern. The Morgellons Research Foundation (MRF), a non-profit organization set up to collate information from sufferers and conduct and orchestrate research, have reported that 95% of those claiming to suffer from Morgellons also report what is described as ‘brain fog’, whilst 50% complain of myalgias (joint pain), sleep disorders and many other symptoms.

Although the reported symptoms of Morgellons are varied they can be summarised as follows;

• Disturbing sensations of insect-like crawling, stinging or biting on or under the skin
• Skin rashes and lesions that do not heal
• Fiber-like filaments, granules or crystals that appear on or under the skin or that can be extracted from lesions
• Joint, muscle and connective tissue pain
• Debilitating fatigue
• Cognitive dysfunction, including difficulty with concentration, short-term memory and attention