Lievesley, Kate, Rimes, Katharine A, Chalder, Trudie · Clinical psychology review · 2014 · DOI
This review looked at 79 studies to understand what factors might contribute to ME/CFS in children and teenagers. The researchers found that young people with ME/CFS are more likely to also experience anxiety or depression than healthy peers. Many patients reported their illness started after an infection, and some families seemed to have multiple members with ME/CFS, though the research on these patterns is still developing.
Understanding what factors might predispose, trigger, or maintain ME/CFS in young people is critical for earlier identification and targeted intervention. This review consolidates evidence about psychiatric comorbidity and infection-related onset, helping clinicians recognize patterns and potentially improve outcomes in pediatric ME/CFS populations.
This review does not establish causation—for example, finding higher depression/anxiety rates does not prove these cause ME/CFS or result solely from it; bidirectional relationships are possible. The predominance of cross-sectional studies means temporal relationships cannot be confirmed, and the review identifies correlation rather than definitive causal mechanisms.
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
Lievesley, Kate, Rimes, Katharine A, & Chalder, Trudie (2014). A review of the predisposing, precipitating and perpetuating factors in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in children and adolescents.. Clinical psychology review. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2014.02.002
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-lievesley-2014-review-predisposing,
author = {Lievesley, Kate and Rimes, Katharine A and Chalder, Trudie},
title = {A review of the predisposing, precipitating and perpetuating factors in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in children and adolescents.},
journal = {Clinical psychology review},
year = {2014},
doi = {10.1016/j.cpr.2014.02.002},
note = {PubMed: 24632047},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lievesley-2014-review-predisposing},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lievesley-2014-review-predisposing
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