Lindh, G, Samuelson, A, Hedlund, K O et al. · Scandinavian journal of infectious diseases · 1996 · DOI
Researchers tested 34 Swedish patients with ME/CFS to see if a virus called enterovirus might be causing their illness. They looked for the virus in stool samples, blood, spinal fluid, and muscle tissue using several different detection methods. The study found no evidence of enterovirus infection in any of the patients tested.
This study directly addresses a prominent hypothesis in ME/CFS research—that persistent enteroviral infection drives the disease. A negative finding helps narrow the search for ME/CFS etiology and redirects investigation toward other potential biological mechanisms.
This study does not prove that enteroviruses play no role in ME/CFS globally or in all patient subpopulations. It only represents findings in a specific Swedish cohort; absence of evidence is not evidence of absence, particularly given the limited sample size and specific detection window.
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
Lindh, G, Samuelson, A, Hedlund, K O, Evengård, B, Lindquist, L, & Ehrnst, A (1996). No findings of enteroviruses in Swedish patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.. Scandinavian journal of infectious diseases. https://doi.org/10.3109/00365549609027178
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-lindh-1996-findings-enteroviruses,
author = {Lindh, G and Samuelson, A and Hedlund, K O and Evengård, B and Lindquist, L and Ehrnst, A},
title = {No findings of enteroviruses in Swedish patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.},
journal = {Scandinavian journal of infectious diseases},
year = {1996},
doi = {10.3109/00365549609027178},
note = {PubMed: 8863367},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lindh-1996-findings-enteroviruses},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lindh-1996-findings-enteroviruses
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