Heim, Christine, Wagner, Dieter, Maloney, Elizabeth et al. · Archives of general psychiatry · 2006 · DOI
This study found that people with ME/CFS reported experiencing more childhood trauma (such as abuse or neglect) than people without the illness. The more types of trauma someone experienced as a child, the higher their risk of developing ME/CFS later in life. The connection between childhood trauma and ME/CFS risk was stronger when people also had depression, anxiety, or PTSD.
Understanding potential developmental risk factors for ME/CFS is crucial for identifying preventive interventions and informing research into the biological mechanisms underlying the disease. This study suggests that psychological trauma may be one modifiable risk factor worth investigating further, potentially opening new avenues for early prevention and targeted treatment approaches.
This study does not prove that childhood trauma causes ME/CFS; it only shows an association. The cross-sectional design means we cannot determine whether trauma preceded CFS development or whether the experience of having CFS led people to report more trauma. Additionally, self-reported trauma history is subject to recall bias and social desirability effects.
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
Heim, Christine, Wagner, Dieter, Maloney, Elizabeth, Papanicolaou, Dimitris A, Solomon, Laura, Jones, James F, et al. (2006). Early adverse experience and risk for chronic fatigue syndrome: results from a population-based study.. Archives of general psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.63.11.1258
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-heim-2006-early-adverse,
author = {Heim, Christine and Wagner, Dieter and Maloney, Elizabeth and Papanicolaou, Dimitris A and Solomon, Laura and Jones, James F and Unger, Elizabeth R and Reeves, William C},
title = {Early adverse experience and risk for chronic fatigue syndrome: results from a population-based study.},
journal = {Archives of general psychiatry},
year = {2006},
doi = {10.1001/archpsyc.63.11.1258},
note = {PubMed: 17088506},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/heim-2006-early-adverse},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/heim-2006-early-adverse
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