DiPino, R K, Kane, R L · Neuropsychology review · 1996 · DOI
This review examined research on thinking and memory problems reported by people with ME/CFS. While patients consistently describe difficulties concentrating and remembering things, scientific tests of these abilities have shown mixed and unclear results. The authors suggest that researchers need to improve how they design studies and what tests they use to better understand these cognitive challenges.
Cognitive dysfunction is a central and distressing feature of ME/CFS for many patients, yet the gap between subjective complaints and objective test results has created doubt about whether these symptoms are 'real.' This review highlights the urgent need for improved research methods to validate patient experiences and develop better diagnostic and treatment approaches for cognitive impairment.
This review does not prove that cognitive problems in ME/CFS are psychological or non-biological in origin. It also does not establish the specific mechanisms causing cognitive dysfunction, nor does it definitively characterize the nature or severity of objective cognitive impairment, as it identifies inconsistent results rather than resolving them.
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
DiPino, R K & Kane, R L (1996). Neurocognitive functioning in chronic fatigue syndrome.. Neuropsychology review. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01875419
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-dipino-1996-neurocognitive-functioning,
author = {DiPino, R K and Kane, R L},
title = {Neurocognitive functioning in chronic fatigue syndrome.},
journal = {Neuropsychology review},
year = {1996},
doi = {10.1007/BF01875419},
note = {PubMed: 9144668},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/dipino-1996-neurocognitive-functioning},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/dipino-1996-neurocognitive-functioning
Contribute
Private, reviewed by a human. Not a public comment thread.