Caffery, B E, Josephson, J E, Samek, M J · Journal of the American Optometric Association · 1994
This study looked at eye problems in 25 people with ME/CFS and found that all of them experienced some eye-related symptoms. The most common issues were problems with tears and the eye's surface, as well as difficulty focusing on close objects. Eye doctors should be aware of these issues when examining ME/CFS patients.
This is one of the first studies to systematically document eye problems in ME/CFS patients, revealing that ocular symptoms are nearly universal in this population. Recognizing these findings helps eye care providers better serve ME/CFS patients and may provide clues about the underlying biological mechanisms of the disease.
This study does not establish whether ocular problems are a direct result of ME/CFS pathology or secondary effects of the condition. The lack of a healthy control group prevents comparison of ocular findings in ME/CFS versus the general population. The small sample size and cross-sectional design limit generalizability to all ME/CFS patients.
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 →
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