Wood, Mariah S, Halmer, Nicole, Bertolli, Jeanne et al. · PloS one · 2024 · DOI
This study found that about 1.67% of adults in a large California health system have ME/CFS-like illness. While COVID-19 can trigger ME/CFS in some people, only about 14% of those with ME/CFS-like illness developed it after having COVID-19. People with ME/CFS-like illness reported significant difficulties with physical activities, work, relationships, and mental health compared to those without the condition.
This study provides important population-level estimates of ME/CFS prevalence in a large, diverse healthcare system and clarifies that while COVID-19 can trigger ME/CFS in some individuals, it was not responsible for a substantial increase in ME/CFS cases during the study period. The finding that ME/CFS affects nearly 1.7% of adults underscores the significant public health burden and urgent need for improved diagnosis and treatment options.
This study does not establish a causal link between COVID-19 and ME/CFS development—it only shows that 14% of ME/CFS cases reported onset after COVID-19. The cross-sectional design cannot determine temporal relationships or rule out recall bias. The findings also cannot be generalized beyond integrated health systems or to populations with different vaccination and infection patterns.
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
Wood, Mariah S, Halmer, Nicole, Bertolli, Jeanne, Amsden, Laura B, Nugent, Joshua R, Lin, Jin-Mann S, et al. (2024). Impact of COVID-19 on myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome-like illness prevalence: A cross-sectional survey.. PloS one. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0309810
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-wood-2024-impact-covid,
author = {Wood, Mariah S and Halmer, Nicole and Bertolli, Jeanne and Amsden, Laura B and Nugent, Joshua R and Lin, Jin-Mann S and Rothrock, Gretchen and Nadle, Joelle and Chai, Shua J and Cope, Jennifer R and Champsi, Jamila H and Yang, James and Unger, Elizabeth R and Skarbinski, Jacek and for STOP-ME/CFS and COVID-SELECT},
title = {Impact of COVID-19 on myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome-like illness prevalence: A cross-sectional survey.},
journal = {PloS one},
year = {2024},
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0309810},
note = {PubMed: 39292671},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/wood-2024-impact-covid},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-29. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/wood-2024-impact-covid
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