Kingdon, Caroline C, Bowman, Erinna W, Curran, Hayley et al. · PharmacoEconomics - open · 2018 · DOI
This study compared how much ME/CFS affects people's daily lives compared to people with multiple sclerosis and healthy people. Researchers found that people with ME/CFS reported significantly worse physical function, ability to work, and social activities than the other two groups. People with ME/CFS also worked fewer hours and earned less money, showing the real-world impact of the illness on their lives.
This research provides objective evidence that ME/CFS causes severe disability comparable to or exceeding that of multiple sclerosis, challenging historical misconceptions that have led to under-recognition and discrimination. The findings support advocacy for better clinical recognition, patient support, and research funding. The study quantifies economic burden through employment and income data, demonstrating costs to individuals and society that justify investment in treatment development.
This study does not establish what causes the functional limitations in ME/CFS or whether specific biological mechanisms differ from MS. It cannot prove that ME/CFS is more disabling in general populations, as biobank participants may differ from the broader ME/CFS population. The cross-sectional design cannot show how functional status changes over time or identify factors that predict better or worse outcomes.
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
Kingdon, Caroline C, Bowman, Erinna W, Curran, Hayley, Nacul, Luis, & Lacerda, Eliana M (2018). Functional Status and Well-Being in People with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Compared with People with Multiple Sclerosis and Healthy Controls.. PharmacoEconomics - open. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41669-018-0071-6
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-kingdon-2018-functional-status,
author = {Kingdon, Caroline C and Bowman, Erinna W and Curran, Hayley and Nacul, Luis and Lacerda, Eliana M},
title = {Functional Status and Well-Being in People with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Compared with People with Multiple Sclerosis and Healthy Controls.},
journal = {PharmacoEconomics - open},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1007/s41669-018-0071-6},
note = {PubMed: 29536371},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kingdon-2018-functional-status},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kingdon-2018-functional-status
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