Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn, Kempke, Stefan, Luyten, Patrick · Current psychiatry reports · 2010 · DOI
This review examines how ME/CFS and fibromyalgia are connected to psychiatric symptoms like depression and stress. The authors explain that these conditions involve overlapping physical symptoms—extreme tiredness, difficulty with activity, brain fog, and widespread pain—that often start after infections or injuries. They suggest that the best approach for patients is personalized lifestyle management and self-care tailored to individual needs, rather than a one-size-fits-all treatment.
Understanding the psychiatric dimensions of ME/CFS helps patients and clinicians recognize that depression and stress are often secondary responses to the condition rather than its primary cause. This perspective shifts treatment focus toward comprehensive, individualized management strategies that address both the biological underpinnings and psychological impacts of the illness.
This review does not establish whether psychiatric symptoms cause ME/CFS or are caused by it; the relationship is likely bidirectional and complex. It does not provide definitive evidence for specific psychiatric interventions or their effectiveness in treating the core symptoms of ME/CFS. As a systematic review without new experimental data, it cannot prove causal mechanisms—only describe associations and proposed biological pathways.
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
Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn, Kempke, Stefan, & Luyten, Patrick (2010). Psychiatric aspects of chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.. Current psychiatry reports. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-010-0105-y
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-van-houdenhove-2010-psychiatric-aspects,
author = {Van Houdenhove, Boudewijn and Kempke, Stefan and Luyten, Patrick},
title = {Psychiatric aspects of chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.},
journal = {Current psychiatry reports},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.1007/s11920-010-0105-y},
note = {PubMed: 20425282},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/van-houdenhove-2010-psychiatric-aspects},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/van-houdenhove-2010-psychiatric-aspects
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