We were crestfallen when we learned we wouldn’t be running any April Fool’s Day gags this year (we could, of course, but that would require posting on Saturday). But we’re happy to bring you someone else’s gag, making its way across the continents and internets today. It’s laziness research from a man named Leth Argos! Get it? There’s more on Motivational Deficiency Disorder, or MoDeD, via BMJ:
Neurologist Leth Argos is part of the team that has identified the disorder, which can be diagnosed using a combination of positron emission tomography and low scores on a motivation rating scale, previously validated in elite athletes. “This disorder is poorly understood,” Professor Argos told the BMJ. “It is underdiagnosed and undertreated.”
Professor Argos is an adviser to a small Australian biotechnology company, Healthtec, which is currently concluding phase II trials of indolebant, a cannabinoid CB1 receptor antagonist. Although still unpublished, the preliminary results from the company’s phase II studies are promising, according to Professor Argos: “Indolebant is effective and well tolerated. One young man who could not leave his sofa is now working as an investment adviser in Sydney.”
Interestingly, the disease-mongering conference they refer to is real — The Disease-Mongering conference features talks on pharmaceutical marketing, the media’s complicity, and one intriguing presentation called “Old Age is Fatal” … Some googling reveals that MoDeD was invented for the conference:
Professor Henry outlines a scenario that will form the basis of an educational exercise. He has created a new ‘disease’ – Motivational Deficiency Disorder (MoDeD), a previously unknown, but surprisingly common condition. Professor Henry says Professor Leth Argos will present data on the prevalence, social impact and treatment of this exhausting new disorder. “Linked with this, a public relations company will demonstrate how a disease is ‘managed’, how it is promoted into the community and will explain all the steps and techniques involved in this process,” he says.
Let’s see how many people diagnose themselves with MoDeD this weekend.