Lee, Kye Hwa, Kim, Cheol Hwan, Shin, Ho Cheol et al. · Korean journal of family medicine · 2011 · DOI
This study examined 109 patients with chronic widespread pain to understand what makes medically unexplained pain different from pain caused by known medical or psychological conditions. Researchers found that patients with unexplained pain had more tender points on their body, greater fatigue, and more functional impairment than those with pain linked to known medical causes, but were very similar to those with pain linked to psychological factors.
This study helps clarify the clinical features of medically unexplained chronic pain, which shares substantial overlap with ME/CFS symptomatology. Understanding how unexplained widespread pain differs from other pain conditions could improve recognition and appropriate management of patients with ME/CFS and related conditions.
This study does not establish causation or explain why medically unexplained pain develops. It cannot determine whether the high tender point counts and fatigue in MUE patients are primary features or secondary responses to undiagnosed organic disease, nor does it validate any specific diagnostic criteria for these conditions.
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
Lee, Kye Hwa, Kim, Cheol Hwan, Shin, Ho Cheol, & Sung, Eun Ju (2011). Clinical characteristics of patients with medically unexplained chronic widespread pain: a primary care center study.. Korean journal of family medicine. https://doi.org/10.4082/kjfm.2011.32.5.277
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-lee-2011-clinical-characteristics,
author = {Lee, Kye Hwa and Kim, Cheol Hwan and Shin, Ho Cheol and Sung, Eun Ju},
title = {Clinical characteristics of patients with medically unexplained chronic widespread pain: a primary care center study.},
journal = {Korean journal of family medicine},
year = {2011},
doi = {10.4082/kjfm.2011.32.5.277},
note = {PubMed: 22745864},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lee-2011-clinical-characteristics},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lee-2011-clinical-characteristics
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