Jason, Leonard A, So, Suzanna, Evans, Meredyth et al. · Journal of prevention & intervention in the community · 2015 · DOI
This study looks at how researchers define and identify ME/CFS using different sets of criteria. The researchers examined various diagnostic guidelines to understand how they work in practice and what makes a good case definition. This work helps ensure that when doctors diagnose ME/CFS, they're using clear, consistent standards.
Clear, standardized case definitions are essential for accurate diagnosis and consistent research; without them, patients may be misdiagnosed or excluded from studies that could help them. This work helps create a common language between doctors and researchers, improving both clinical care and the quality of scientific evidence about ME/CFS. Establishing operationalized criteria reduces confusion and ensures that people with ME/CFS can access appropriate treatment and participate in meaningful research.
This overview does not prove that any single case definition is superior to others, nor does it provide new clinical data about ME/CFS pathology. It does not establish the diagnostic accuracy of any criteria through prospective testing, and as a methods paper, it cannot determine which definition best identifies true ME/CFS cases in actual patient populations.
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
Jason, Leonard A, So, Suzanna, Evans, Meredyth, Brown, Abigail, Sunnquist, Madison, Im, Young, et al. (2015). An overview of operationalizing criteria for ME, ME/CFS, and CFS case definitions.. Journal of prevention & intervention in the community. https://doi.org/10.1080/10852352.2014.973237
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-jason-2015-overview-operationalizing,
author = {Jason, Leonard A and So, Suzanna and Evans, Meredyth and Brown, Abigail and Sunnquist, Madison and Im, Young and Schafer, Charles},
title = {An overview of operationalizing criteria for ME, ME/CFS, and CFS case definitions.},
journal = {Journal of prevention & intervention in the community},
year = {2015},
doi = {10.1080/10852352.2014.973237},
note = {PubMed: 25584523},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/jason-2015-overview-operationalizing},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/jason-2015-overview-operationalizing
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