Pinquart, Martin · Praxis der Kinderpsychologie und Kinderpsychiatrie · 2017 · DOI
This study reviewed research on how children with long-term illnesses and their parents cope emotionally. The researchers found that children with ME/CFS and chronic headaches showed the highest levels of depression and anxiety. Interestingly, parents were often more distressed than their sick children, particularly parents of children with HIV/AIDS or cerebral palsy.
For ME/CFS patients and families, this study validates that psychological distress is a recognized and documented aspect of living with ME/CFS in children—not a cause of the illness, but an understandable consequence. It also highlights that parental psychological support is critical, as parents may experience significant distress that affects family functioning and the child's care environment.
This meta-analysis does not prove that psychological factors cause ME/CFS; it documents that chronic illness causes psychological effects. It does not establish the mechanisms of this relationship, nor does it determine whether psychological interventions alone can treat ME/CFS. The study compares conditions but does not evaluate ME/CFS-specific treatments or outcomes.
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
Pinquart, Martin (2017). [Psychological Health of Children with Chronic Physical Illness and their Parents - Results from Meta-Analyses].. Praxis der Kinderpsychologie und Kinderpsychiatrie. https://doi.org/10.13109/prkk.2017.66.9.656
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-pinquart-2017-psychological-health,
author = {Pinquart, Martin},
title = {[Psychological Health of Children with Chronic Physical Illness and their Parents - Results from Meta-Analyses].},
journal = {Praxis der Kinderpsychologie und Kinderpsychiatrie},
year = {2017},
doi = {10.13109/prkk.2017.66.9.656},
note = {PubMed: 29111893},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/pinquart-2017-psychological-health},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/pinquart-2017-psychological-health
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