Questions Asked by The Countess of Mar:

1. To ask Her Majesty’s Government why mitochondrial function testing is not generally available through the National Health Service.[HL684]

25 Jun 2012 : Column WA23:The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Earl Howe): We understand that mitochondrial function testing as a possible diagnostic test for chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis is not yet accepted as part of normal clinical practice. It is for local commissioners to determine what services they should commission to meet the needs of their populations, within available resources and local priorities.

2. To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 25 June (WA 22-3), what assessment they have made of the findings recently published in the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Medicine on mitochondrial dysfunction; and whether mitochondrial dysfunction occurs in any medical conditions other than chronic fatigue syndrome or myalgic encephalomyelitis.[HL1336]

17 July 2012 : Column WA36       The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Earl Howe): We have made no assessment of this study, which looks at mitochondrial function in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Mitochondrial disease affects all organ systems and mitochondrial dysfunction has been increasingly linked with a number of neurological conditions including stroke, seizures, ataxia, migraine and Parkinson’s disease. There is also an association between mitochondrial dysfunction and a number of retinal degenerations, including diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration, as well as in some cardiac conditions such as cardiomyopathy or conduction defects. The most common condition related to mitochondrial dysfunction in the endocrine system is diabetes and adult onset diabetes has been found to have a mitochondrial component.