Luyten, Patrick, Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn, Pae, Chi-Un et al. · Psychiatry investigation · 2008 · DOI
This review examines current treatments for ME/CFS and discusses what we know about what causes the condition. The authors suggest that effective treatment should be personalized to each patient's needs and focus on helping people make lasting changes to their lifestyle that restore both mental and physical balance. The review emphasizes that while treatments exist, many patients still have a poor prognosis even when receiving care.
This paper synthesizes evidence on ME/CFS treatments during a period when understanding of the condition was evolving, providing a bridge between emerging science and practical patient care. For patients, it emphasizes the importance of individualized, lifestyle-based treatment approaches rather than one-size-fits-all interventions.
This review does not prove that any single treatment is universally effective for all ME/CFS patients, nor does it establish causal mechanisms underlying the condition. The study does not provide new clinical trial data, but rather synthesizes and critically appraises existing literature, meaning specific therapeutic efficacy claims require examination of the underlying studies cited.
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
Luyten, Patrick, Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn, Pae, Chi-Un, Kempke, Stefan, & Van Wambeke, Peter (2008). Treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome: findings, principles and strategies.. Psychiatry investigation. https://doi.org/10.4306/pi.2008.5.4.209
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-luyten-2008-treatment-chronic,
author = {Luyten, Patrick and Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn and Pae, Chi-Un and Kempke, Stefan and Van Wambeke, Peter},
title = {Treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome: findings, principles and strategies.},
journal = {Psychiatry investigation},
year = {2008},
doi = {10.4306/pi.2008.5.4.209},
note = {PubMed: 20046339},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/luyten-2008-treatment-chronic},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-26. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/luyten-2008-treatment-chronic
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