de Korwin, J-D, Chiche, L, Banovic, I et al. · La Revue de medecine interne · 2016 · DOI
This article reviews what we know about ME/CFS more than 30 years after it was first recognized as a distinct condition. The authors explain that ME/CFS likely results from multiple causes working together—such as infections that trigger the illness and ongoing problems with the immune system, inflammation, and energy production in muscle cells. They discuss a newer framework called Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disease that may help doctors diagnose and treat the condition more effectively.
This systematic review validates that ME/CFS involves real, measurable biological abnormalities rather than being purely psychological, which can help reduce diagnostic delays and stigma. The discussion of evolving diagnostic frameworks (particularly SEID) offers patients hope for more standardized, evidence-based clinical recognition and management approaches.
This editorial does not prove a single cause of ME/CFS or definitively establish which biological abnormalities are primary versus secondary consequences. It acknowledges that many available studies show contradictory results, meaning the relative importance of inflammation, immune dysfunction, and mitochondrial problems remains unclear. As an editorial synthesizing existing work, it presents no new experimental data of its own.
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
de Korwin, J-D, Chiche, L, Banovic, I, Ghali, A, Delliaux, S, Authier, F-J, et al. (2016). [Chronic fatigue syndrome: A new disorder?].. La Revue de medecine interne. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revmed.2016.05.003
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-de-korwin-2016-chronic-fatigue,
author = {de Korwin, J-D and Chiche, L and Banovic, I and Ghali, A and Delliaux, S and Authier, F-J and Cozon, G and Hatron, P-Y and Fornasieri, I and Morinet, F},
title = {[Chronic fatigue syndrome: A new disorder?].},
journal = {La Revue de medecine interne},
year = {2016},
doi = {10.1016/j.revmed.2016.05.003},
note = {PubMed: 27260787},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/de-korwin-2016-chronic-fatigue},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/de-korwin-2016-chronic-fatigue
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