Scheibenbogen, Carmen, Sotzny, Franziska, Hartwig, Jelka et al. · Journal of clinical medicine · 2021 · DOI
This study tested whether injecting immunoglobulin G (IgG), a type of protective protein from the immune system, could help ME/CFS patients who have low levels of this protein and get frequent infections. Seventeen patients received monthly injections under the skin for 12 months. About half the patients who completed the treatment felt noticeably better, with less fatigue and improved ability to function in daily life, though some patients had to stop due to side effects.
For ME/CFS patients with immune deficiencies and recurrent infections, this study provides preliminary evidence that IgG replacement may be a tolerable treatment option that benefits a subset of patients. Identifying potential biomarkers (LDH and soluble IL-2 receptor) could help future research determine which patients are most likely to respond to this therapy.
This study does not prove that IgG therapy works for all ME/CFS patients or even for all patients with IgG deficiency, as it was a small open-label trial without a control group. The 42% response rate does not establish cause-and-effect; improvement could be due to placebo effect, natural disease variation, or other concurrent factors. The findings cannot be generalized beyond the specific patient population studied (those with mild IgG deficiency and recurrent infections).
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
Scheibenbogen, Carmen, Sotzny, Franziska, Hartwig, Jelka, Bauer, Sandra, Freitag, Helma, Wittke, Kirsten, et al. (2021). Tolerability and Efficacy of s.c. IgG Self-Treatment in ME/CFS Patients with IgG/IgG Subclass Deficiency: A Proof-of-Concept Study.. Journal of clinical medicine. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm10112420
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-scheibenbogen-2021-tolerability-efficacy,
author = {Scheibenbogen, Carmen and Sotzny, Franziska and Hartwig, Jelka and Bauer, Sandra and Freitag, Helma and Wittke, Kirsten and Doehner, Wolfram and Scherbakov, Nadja and Loebel, Madlen and Grabowski, Patricia},
title = {Tolerability and Efficacy of s.c. IgG Self-Treatment in ME/CFS Patients with IgG/IgG Subclass Deficiency: A Proof-of-Concept Study.},
journal = {Journal of clinical medicine},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.3390/jcm10112420},
note = {PubMed: 34072494},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/scheibenbogen-2021-tolerability-efficacy},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-27. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/scheibenbogen-2021-tolerability-efficacy
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