Goldsmith, K A, Chalder, T, White, P D et al. · Statistical methods in medical research · 2018 · DOI
This study examined how treatments work in the PACE trial by using advanced statistical methods to track changes in patients' symptoms and functioning over time. The researchers tested different ways of analyzing data to understand whether improvements in one area (like activity levels) might explain improvements in another area (like fatigue). They found that accounting for measurement errors and considering the timing of measurements was important for getting accurate results.
This study improves how researchers analyze treatment trials for ME/CFS by identifying best practices for understanding treatment mechanisms. Better statistical methods help determine which specific changes in patients' condition are actually responsible for improvements, which can guide future treatment development. These methodological advances ensure that conclusions about how treatments work are more reliable and trustworthy.
This study does not prove whether any specific treatment mechanism actually works or whether the PACE interventions are effective. It is a methodological study about how to properly analyze data, not a clinical outcomes study. The findings about statistical approaches may or may not apply to other ME/CFS trials with different measurement schedules or treatment types.
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
Goldsmith, K A, Chalder, T, White, P D, Sharpe, M, & Pickles, A (2018). Measurement error, time lag, unmeasured confounding: Considerations for longitudinal estimation of the effect of a mediator in randomised clinical trials.. Statistical methods in medical research. https://doi.org/10.1177/0962280216666111
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-goldsmith-2018-measurement-error,
author = {Goldsmith, K A and Chalder, T and White, P D and Sharpe, M and Pickles, A},
title = {Measurement error, time lag, unmeasured confounding: Considerations for longitudinal estimation of the effect of a mediator in randomised clinical trials.},
journal = {Statistical methods in medical research},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1177/0962280216666111},
note = {PubMed: 27647810},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/goldsmith-2018-measurement-error},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-27. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/goldsmith-2018-measurement-error
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