Crawley, Esther, Mills, Nicola, Beasant, Lucy et al. · Trials · 2013 · DOI
This study tested whether it was possible to run a fair comparison trial between standard medical care and a treatment called the Lightning Process for children with ME/CFS. Researchers recruited 56 young people aged 12-18 from a specialist clinic and found that running this type of trial was workable and acceptable to patients. The study helped identify practical changes to improve how future trials should be conducted.
This study is important because it established that rigorous randomized trials testing alternative treatments for pediatric ME/CFS are logistically feasible, paving the way for evidence-based evaluation of interventions like the Lightning Process. For patients, this means future research can be conducted in ways that are realistic and respectful of their needs. The integration of patient feedback into trial design demonstrates a commitment to patient-centered research.
This feasibility study does NOT determine whether the Lightning Process is effective, ineffective, or harmful—it only assesses whether a trial comparing it to standard care can be conducted. It does not provide safety data or efficacy data for the Lightning Process. The study cannot establish causation or treatment outcomes, as it was designed solely to test trial procedures and acceptability.
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
Crawley, Esther, Mills, Nicola, Beasant, Lucy, Johnson, Debbie, Collin, Simon M, Deans, Zuzana, et al. (2013). The feasibility and acceptability of conducting a trial of specialist medical care and the Lightning Process in children with chronic fatigue syndrome: feasibility randomized controlled trial (SMILE study).. Trials. https://doi.org/10.1186/1745-6215-14-415
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-crawley-2013-feasibility-acceptability,
author = {Crawley, Esther and Mills, Nicola and Beasant, Lucy and Johnson, Debbie and Collin, Simon M and Deans, Zuzana and White, Kate and Montgomery, Alan},
title = {The feasibility and acceptability of conducting a trial of specialist medical care and the Lightning Process in children with chronic fatigue syndrome: feasibility randomized controlled trial (SMILE study).},
journal = {Trials},
year = {2013},
doi = {10.1186/1745-6215-14-415},
note = {PubMed: 24304689},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/crawley-2013-feasibility-acceptability},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-29. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/crawley-2013-feasibility-acceptability
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