Wiborg, Jan F, van der Werf, Sieberen, Prins, Judith B et al. · Psychiatry research · 2010 · DOI
This study looked at ME/CFS patients who are unable to leave their homes and compared them to patients who can still go to clinics for treatment. Homebound patients experienced much worse daily fatigue, were more likely to believe their symptoms were physical rather than psychological, and tended to be less active. The researchers found that homebound patients may need different treatment approaches designed specifically for their severe level of disability.
This is one of the first systematic studies examining the most severely affected ME/CFS patients who are homebound. Understanding how this population differs from less severely ill patients is crucial for developing appropriate clinical interventions and recognizing that ME/CFS severity exists on a spectrum with potentially different treatment needs.
This study does not establish causation—it cannot determine whether the extreme fatigue causes homebound status or whether being homebound causes worsening fatigue. It also does not test whether tailored treatments would actually be more effective for homebound patients, only that they appear to need different approaches. The small scope means findings may not represent all homebound CFS patients.
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
Wiborg, Jan F, van der Werf, Sieberen, Prins, Judith B, & Bleijenberg, Gijs (2010). Being homebound with chronic fatigue syndrome: A multidimensional comparison with outpatients.. Psychiatry research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2010.02.010
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-wiborg-2010-being-homebound,
author = {Wiborg, Jan F and van der Werf, Sieberen and Prins, Judith B and Bleijenberg, Gijs},
title = {Being homebound with chronic fatigue syndrome: A multidimensional comparison with outpatients.},
journal = {Psychiatry research},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.1016/j.psychres.2010.02.010},
note = {PubMed: 20207012},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/wiborg-2010-being-homebound},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-27. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/wiborg-2010-being-homebound
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