Wang, Jing-jing, Song, Yu-jing, Wu, Zhong-chao et al. · Zhongguo zhen jiu = Chinese acupuncture & moxibustion · 2009
This study tested whether acupuncture could help improve quality of life in people with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Researchers treated 70 patients with either real acupuncture at specific traditional points or fake acupuncture at nearby non-therapeutic points, three times per week for 14 sessions. Patients treated with real acupuncture reported improvements in physical symptoms and overall well-being, with no serious side effects.
This study addresses a key concern for ME/CFS patients—improving quality of life and functional capacity. If acupuncture can safely improve physical symptoms and health perception in CFS patients, it could represent a valuable complementary treatment option with minimal adverse effects.
This study does not prove acupuncture is superior to other treatments for CFS, nor does it establish why acupuncture might work mechanistically. The study was single-blinded rather than double-blinded, which may introduce bias, and improvements were modest and limited to specific quality-of-life domains rather than core CFS symptoms like post-exertional malaise.
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
Wang, Jing-jing, Song, Yu-jing, Wu, Zhong-chao, Chu, Xiao-ou, Wang, Qiao-mei, Wei, Li-na, et al. (2009). [Randomized controlled study on influence of acupuncture for life quality of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome].. Zhongguo zhen jiu = Chinese acupuncture & moxibustion. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19873911/
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-wang-2009-randomized-controlled-2,
author = {Wang, Jing-jing and Song, Yu-jing and Wu, Zhong-chao and Chu, Xiao-ou and Wang, Qiao-mei and Wei, Li-na and Wang, Xiao-jie and Meng, Hong},
title = {[Randomized controlled study on influence of acupuncture for life quality of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome].},
journal = {Zhongguo zhen jiu = Chinese acupuncture & moxibustion},
year = {2009},
note = {PubMed: 19873911},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/wang-2009-randomized-controlled-2},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-25. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/wang-2009-randomized-controlled-2
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