Vroegindeweij, Anouk, Wulffraat, Nico M, Van De Putte, Elise M et al. · British journal of health psychology · 2024 · DOI
This study tested two different approaches to help young people (ages 12-29) with persistent fatigue manage their symptoms: personalized lifestyle advice tailored to each person, and generic dietary guidelines. Over 12 weeks each, both approaches similarly improved fatigue levels, confidence in managing their condition, and quality of life. The improvements were small but meaningful, suggesting these self-help strategies could be useful while waiting for other treatments like therapy.
This study addresses a critical clinical gap by evaluating practical, accessible self-management strategies for adolescents and young adults with fatigue syndromes. The finding that both tailored and generic approaches produce meaningful improvements suggests that symptom management support may benefit young patients with ME/CFS while they await evidence-based treatments, reducing burden on specialized services and improving quality of life during waiting periods.
This study does not establish that these interventions are curative or superior to established treatments like cognitive behavioral therapy; it only suggests they may help manage symptoms and bridge waiting times. The mixed cohort (fatigue syndrome plus rheumatic conditions) limits conclusions specific to ME/CFS. Dropouts and completion rate (46/60) mean results may not reflect intent-to-treat populations, and the 12-week timeframe does not assess long-term sustainability.
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
Vroegindeweij, Anouk, Wulffraat, Nico M, Van De Putte, Elise M, De Jong, Hanne B T, Lucassen, Desiree A, Swart, Joost F, et al. (2024). Targeting persistent fatigue with tailored versus generic self-management strategies in adolescents and young adults with a fatigue syndrome or rheumatic condition: A randomized crossover trial.. British journal of health psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjhp.12711
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-vroegindeweij-2024-targeting-persistent,
author = {Vroegindeweij, Anouk and Wulffraat, Nico M and Van De Putte, Elise M and De Jong, Hanne B T and Lucassen, Desiree A and Swart, Joost F and Nijhof, Sanne L},
title = {Targeting persistent fatigue with tailored versus generic self-management strategies in adolescents and young adults with a fatigue syndrome or rheumatic condition: A randomized crossover trial.},
journal = {British journal of health psychology},
year = {2024},
doi = {10.1111/bjhp.12711},
note = {PubMed: 38072649},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/vroegindeweij-2024-targeting-persistent},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-27. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/vroegindeweij-2024-targeting-persistent
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