Maes, Michael, Twisk, Frank N M, Ringel, Karl · Psychotherapy and psychosomatics · 2012 · DOI
This study found that people with ME/CFS have higher levels of inflammatory markers (immune chemicals) in their blood compared to people with depression, even though both conditions can cause fatigue and other similar symptoms. The researchers measured specific immune proteins and found that while both ME/CFS and depression involve some immune system changes, ME/CFS shows a distinctly different immune profile that helps distinguish it from depression.
This research provides biological evidence that ME/CFS involves a distinct inflammatory profile compared to depression, supporting the view that ME/CFS has biological underpinnings rather than being purely functional or psychological. This distinction is crucial for validating ME/CFS as a separate condition and may guide more targeted diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.
This study does not prove that inflammation causes ME/CFS, only that elevated inflammatory markers are associated with the condition. The cross-sectional design cannot establish whether immune changes precede symptom onset or result from the disease process. It also does not identify which specific triggers activate these inflammatory responses in ME/CFS patients.
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
Maes, Michael, Twisk, Frank N M, & Ringel, Karl (2012). Inflammatory and cell-mediated immune biomarkers in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and depression: inflammatory markers are higher in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome than in depression.. Psychotherapy and psychosomatics. https://doi.org/10.1159/000336803
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-maes-2012-inflammatory-cell,
author = {Maes, Michael and Twisk, Frank N M and Ringel, Karl},
title = {Inflammatory and cell-mediated immune biomarkers in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and depression: inflammatory markers are higher in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome than in depression.},
journal = {Psychotherapy and psychosomatics},
year = {2012},
doi = {10.1159/000336803},
note = {PubMed: 22832503},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/maes-2012-inflammatory-cell},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/maes-2012-inflammatory-cell
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