Allen, John, Murray, Alan, Di Maria, Costanzo et al. · Physiological measurement · 2012 · DOI
This study tested a new way to measure how the heart and blood vessels respond when people stand up, using a painless light-based sensor on the ears, fingers, and toes. Researchers found that people with ME/CFS had a weaker blood vessel response to standing compared to healthy controls, which could potentially be used as an objective test to help diagnose ME/CFS.
ME/CFS currently lacks objective diagnostic biomarkers, forcing clinicians to rely on symptom reporting and exclusion criteria. This study demonstrates that non-invasive optical sensors can detect measurable cardiovascular dysfunction in ME/CFS patients, potentially providing an objective tool to aid diagnosis and validate the biological basis of the condition.
This study does not prove that pulse wave abnormalities cause ME/CFS or that the test can distinguish ME/CFS from other conditions causing orthostatic intolerance (such as POTS, deconditioning, or other autonomic disorders). The cross-sectional design cannot establish whether these cardiovascular changes persist over time or whether they improve with treatment.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Allen, John, Murray, Alan, Di Maria, Costanzo, & Newton, Julia L (2012). Chronic fatigue syndrome and impaired peripheral pulse characteristics on orthostasis--a new potential diagnostic biomarker.. Physiological measurement. https://doi.org/10.1088/0967-3334/33/2/231
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-allen-2012-chronic-fatigue,
author = {Allen, John and Murray, Alan and Di Maria, Costanzo and Newton, Julia L},
title = {Chronic fatigue syndrome and impaired peripheral pulse characteristics on orthostasis--a new potential diagnostic biomarker.},
journal = {Physiological measurement},
year = {2012},
doi = {10.1088/0967-3334/33/2/231},
note = {PubMed: 22273713},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/allen-2012-chronic-fatigue},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/allen-2012-chronic-fatigue
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