Lim, A, Lubitz, L · Journal of paediatrics and child health · 2002 · DOI
This study looked at teenagers with ME/CFS who participated in an intensive inpatient rehabilitation program at an Australian hospital. Most participants improved significantly, with the majority returning to full-time or nearly full-time school and increasing their physical activity and social involvement. These improvements lasted for up to 5 years after the program ended.
This study provides evidence that structured, multidisciplinary inpatient rehabilitation can produce sustained functional improvements in adolescents with ME/CFS, offering hope for this severely affected population. The 5-year follow-up duration is valuable, as most ME/CFS outcome studies lack long-term data.
This study does not prove that the inpatient programme caused the improvements, as there was no control group for comparison. The findings reflect self-reported outcomes rather than objective clinical measurements, and the 74% follow-up rate introduces potential selection bias. The study does not establish which specific programme components were most effective.
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
Lim, A & Lubitz, L (2002). Chronic fatigue syndrome: successful outcome of an intensive inpatient programme.. Journal of paediatrics and child health. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1440-1754.2002.00786.x
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-lim-2002-chronic-fatigue,
author = {Lim, A and Lubitz, L},
title = {Chronic fatigue syndrome: successful outcome of an intensive inpatient programme.},
journal = {Journal of paediatrics and child health},
year = {2002},
doi = {10.1046/j.1440-1754.2002.00786.x},
note = {PubMed: 12047700},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lim-2002-chronic-fatigue},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-27. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lim-2002-chronic-fatigue
Contribute
Private, reviewed by a human. Not a public comment thread.