ME/CFS Evidence Browser — Classified Studies on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

2795 studies

901–920 of 2,795 studies

E2 ModerateCohortPEM requiredCross-Sectional

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS): Investigating care practices pointed out to disparities in diagnosis and treatment across European Union.

Strand, Elin B, Nacul, Luis, Mengshoel, Anne Marit et al.·PloS one·2019

This study looked at how ME/CFS is diagnosed and treated across 17 European countries by surveying doctors and health organizations. The researchers found that different countries use different diagnostic tests and treatment approaches, with no standard way of doing things across Europe. The study shows that there is confusion and inconsistency in how ME/CFS patients are evaluated and cared for, which suggests that Europe needs to agree on common guidelines.

Diagnostics

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Prevalence and characteristics of chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) in Poland: a cross-sectional study.

Słomko, Joanna, Newton, Julia L, Kujawski, Sławomir et al.·BMJ open·2019

Researchers in Poland studied 1,400 people who reported feeling very tired to understand how common ME/CFS really is. They found that 69 people actually had ME/CFS based on standard diagnostic criteria. These patients experienced severe fatigue that lasted years, had trouble staying awake during the day, problems with dizziness when standing up, anxiety, and depression—all of which seriously affected their quality of life.

Sleep

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearLongitudinal

Long Term Follow up of Young People With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Attending a Pediatric Outpatient Service.

Rowe, Katherine S·Frontiers in pediatrics·2019

This study followed 784 young people with ME/CFS for an average of 8 years to understand how the illness progresses over time. About half of the young people reported recovery within 5 years, and by 10 years, 68% reported feeling recovered. Most young people improved in their ability to function daily, though a small group (5%) remained very unwell. Having supportive doctors, staying involved in school with flexible accommodations, and developing personal management plans were all important for long-term improvement.

Autonomic Nervous System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM requiredCross-Sectional

Differentiating Post-Polio Syndrome from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Klebek, Lauren, Sunnquist, Madison, Jason, Leonard A·Fatigue : biomedicine, health & behavior·2019

This study compared three similar long-term illnesses that cause fatigue and muscle problems: Post-polio syndrome (PPS), ME, and CFS. Researchers used questionnaires and computer analysis to identify which symptoms best distinguish these conditions from each other. They found that people with ME/CFS tend to have more severe overall functional impairment than those with PPS, and that three specific areas—brain fog, post-exertional malaise (getting worse after activity), and hormone-related symptoms—are most helpful in telling these illnesses apart.

Post-Exertional Malaise

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Neuropsychological dysfunction in chronic fatigue syndrome and the relation between objective and subjective findings.

Rasouli, Omid, Gotaas, Merethe Eide, Stensdotter, Ann-Katrin et al.·Neuropsychology·2019

This study tested whether people with ME/CFS who report having trouble thinking and remembering actually show problems on objective cognitive tests. Researchers gave 236 patients questionnaires about memory difficulties and gave them various thinking tests. They found that patients' own reports of cognitive problems didn't strongly match their actual test results, but those with higher fatigue, pain, and depression tended to report more thinking difficulties. The actual cognitive problems found on testing were mainly in speed of thinking and attention.

Cognitive Impairment

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Impairments in cognitive performance in chronic fatigue syndrome are common, not related to co-morbid depression but do associate with autonomic dysfunction.

Robinson, Lucy J, Gallagher, Peter, Watson, Stuart et al.·PloS one·2019

This study found that people with ME/CFS often experience slowing in thinking speed and processing information, particularly in tasks requiring quick reactions. Importantly, these cognitive difficulties are not caused by depression—even patients without depression showed the same thinking problems. The researchers discovered that problems with heart rate regulation (how the body's autonomic nervous system works) were linked to these cognitive difficulties.

Autonomic Nervous SystemCognitive Impairment

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearCross-Sectional

Pain is associated with reduced quality of life and functional status in patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Strand, Elin Bolle, Mengshoel, Anne Marit, Sandvik, Leiv et al.·Scandinavian journal of pain·2019

This study compared 87 ME/CFS patients with 94 healthy people to understand how pain affects quality of life. Researchers found that ME/CFS patients experience significantly more pain, anxiety, and depression, and have lower quality of life than healthy controls. Within the ME/CFS group, pain was strongly linked to reduced physical functioning and overall quality of life, suggesting that managing pain could help improve how well patients function daily.

Pain and Sensitization

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearObservational

Relationship Between Exercise-induced Oxidative Stress Changes and Parasympathetic Activity in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: An Observational Study in Patients and Healthy Subjects.

Polli, Andrea, Van Oosterwijck, Jessica, Nijs, Jo et al.·Clinical therapeutics·2019

This study looked at whether oxidative stress (cellular damage from normal metabolism) is related to pain in ME/CFS patients, and how it connects to the vagus nerve, which helps control the body's relaxation response. Researchers had ME/CFS patients and healthy people do a mild exercise test and measured their pain, oxidative stress levels, and nerve activity before and after. They found that oxidative stress was linked to pain in ME/CFS patients, but unlike healthy people, ME/CFS patients didn't show improvements in pain or oxidative stress after exercise.

Pain and SensitizationAutonomic Nervous System

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM unclearCross-Sectional

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome patients' reports of symptom changes following cognitive behavioural therapy, graded exercise therapy and pacing treatments: Analysis of a primary survey compared with secondary surveys.

Geraghty, Keith, Hann, Mark, Kurtev, Stoyan·Journal of health psychology·2019

This study asked ME/CFS patients about their experiences with three different treatment approaches: cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), graded exercise therapy (GET), and pacing. The researchers found that pacing—where patients carefully manage their activity levels without pushing beyond their limits—was reported as most helpful and caused the fewest problems. In contrast, GET led to significant symptom worsening in over half of patients, while CBT helped only a small percentage of people.

Post-Exertional Malaise

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Endometriosis as a Comorbid Condition in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS): Secondary Analysis of Data From a CFS Case-Control Study.

Boneva, Roumiana S, Lin, Jin-Mann S, Wieser, Friedrich et al.·Frontiers in pediatrics·2019

This study looked at 36 women with ME/CFS to see how many also had endometriosis (a painful condition where tissue grows outside the uterus) and whether it affected their health differently. More than one-third of the women with ME/CFS had endometriosis, and those women reported more ME/CFS symptoms, pelvic pain, and earlier menopause than women with ME/CFS alone. However, endometriosis did not seem to worsen their overall fatigue or functioning.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredLongitudinal

Predictors of chronic fatigue in adolescents six months after acute Epstein-Barr virus infection: A prospective cohort study.

Pedersen, Maria, Asprusten, Tarjei Tørre, Godang, Kristin et al.·Brain, behavior, and immunity·2019

This study followed 200 teenagers who had an acute Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection to see which factors predicted who would develop lasting fatigue six months later. Researchers measured many baseline characteristics including pain sensitivity, mood, memory, physical activity level, and blood markers like vitamin B12 and inflammation levels. They found that fatigue six months after EBV was most strongly predicted by things like sensory sensitivity, pain, anxiety, and how active the teenager was—rather than by immune system markers alone.

Biomarkers

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Does fatigue and distress in a clinical cohort of adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome correlate with fatigue and distress in their parents?

Loades, Maria E, Rimes, Katharine A, Ali, Sheila et al.·Child: care, health and development·2019

This study asked whether parents of teenagers with ME/CFS experience similar levels of tiredness and emotional distress as their children. Researchers surveyed 115 adolescents with ME/CFS, along with their mothers and fathers, about fatigue, mood, anxiety, and how well the family was functioning. The main finding was that parents' own tiredness and distress were not directly linked to how severe their child's illness was, but family stress and poor coping skills were connected to teenagers feeling more depressed.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Evidence for similarity in symptoms and mechanism: The extra-pulmonary symptoms of severe asthma and the polysymptomatic presentation of fibromyalgia.

Hyland, Michael E, Lanario, Joseph W, Wei, Yinghui et al.·Immunity, inflammation and disease·2019

This study found that people with severe asthma report many symptoms beyond breathing problems—such as fatigue, pain, and digestive issues—that are very similar to symptoms seen in fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. The researchers compared symptom patterns between asthma patients and people with various functional disorders, finding that asthma and fibromyalgia symptoms were 75% similar in type and pattern. This suggests these conditions may share common underlying mechanisms related to how the body's systems interact.

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Hematological and Psychophysiological Correlates of Anomalous Information Reception in Mediums: A Preliminary Exploration.

Beischel, Julie, Tassone, Shawn, Boccuzzi, Mark·Explore (New York, N.Y.)·2019

This study looked at whether people who identify as mediums (those who report communicating with deceased individuals) experience more health problems than people who don't. Researchers found that mediums reported significantly more autoimmune diseases, sleep problems, gastrointestinal issues, and other symptoms compared to non-mediums. However, blood tests and heart rate measurements taken during mediumship sessions showed no unusual changes.

Sleep

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Cytokine profiles in patients with Q fever fatigue syndrome.

Raijmakers, Ruud P H, Koeken, Valerie A C M, Jansen, Anne F M et al.·The Journal of infection·2019

This study looked at inflammatory markers in people who developed prolonged fatigue after Q fever infection. Researchers compared blood samples from patients with Q fever fatigue syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome patients, people who had Q fever but recovered, and healthy controls. They found that Q fever fatigue syndrome patients had higher levels of specific inflammation proteins, suggesting chronic inflammation may be driving their ongoing fatigue.

Immune System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM requiredCross-Sectional

Deconstructing post-exertional malaise: An exploratory factor analysis.

McManimen, Stephanie L, Sunnquist, Madison L, Jason, Leonard A·Journal of health psychology·2019

This study looked at post-exertional malaise (PEM)—the worsening of symptoms that happens after physical activity in ME/CFS—to understand whether it is one unified experience or two different types. The researchers found that PEM actually consists of two separate experiences: a whole-body fatigue and a muscle-specific fatigue. This suggests that PEM is more complex than previously thought and may need to be understood as having distinct components.

Post-Exertional Malaise

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearObservational

Unexplained exertional intolerance associated with impaired systemic oxygen extraction.

Melamed, Kathryn H, Santos, Mário, Oliveira, Rudolf K F et al.·European journal of applied physiology·2019

This study examined 313 patients with unexplained exercise intolerance using specialized heart and lung testing. Researchers found that about 12.5% of these patients have trouble exercising because their muscles cannot extract and use oxygen properly from the bloodstream, rather than having heart or lung problems. In these patients, the blood remained less acidic during exercise and had higher oxygen levels than expected, suggesting the muscles simply weren't using the available oxygen efficiently.

Post-Exertional Malaise

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearCross-Sectional

Evidence of Clinical Pathology Abnormalities in People with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) from an Analytic Cross-Sectional Study.

Nacul, Luis, de Barros, Barbara, Kingdon, Caroline C et al.·Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland)·2019

Researchers tested blood samples from 272 people with ME/CFS and 136 healthy people to look for measurable differences that might help diagnose the condition. They found that people with severe ME/CFS had notably lower levels of an enzyme called creatine kinase (CK) in their blood compared to healthy people and those with milder ME/CFS. This is the first study to report this pattern, suggesting that CK levels might be useful for identifying who has the most severe form of the disease.

Biomarkers

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCase-Control

Cognitive and behavioural responses to symptoms in adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome: A case-control study nested within a cohort.

Loades, Maria Elizabeth, Rimes, Katharine, Lievesley, Kate et al.·Clinical child psychology and psychiatry·2019

This study looked at how adolescents with ME/CFS think about and respond to their symptoms, compared to teenagers with asthma. Researchers found that young people with ME/CFS tend to have unhelpful thought patterns—like believing symptoms cause permanent damage—and unhelpful behaviors like pushing through activity or avoiding it completely. These unhelpful patterns were linked to more fatigue and disability over a 3-month follow-up period.

Cognitive Impairment

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM unclearCross-Sectional

HOW PSYCHIATRIC REFERRALS INFLUENCE STIGMATIZATION IN PATIENTS WITH MYALGIC ENCEPHALOMYELITIS AND CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME: AN EXAMINATION OF AMERICAN AND BRITISH MODELS.

Terman, Julia M, Cotler, Joseph, Jason, Leonard A·Community psychology in global perspective·2019

This study looked at how ME/CFS patients feel when their doctors refer them to psychiatrists or psychologists. Researchers found that patients who received these referrals were more likely to feel stigmatized (judged or looked down upon) and to feel isolated from others. The experience was different in the United States and United Kingdom, suggesting that healthcare systems and culture play a role in how these referrals affect patients.

← Previous Next 20 studies →

Or browse by topic

PEM Immune Neuro Metabolic Biomarkers Severe ME Long COVID Cognitive

Evidence Atlas

Evidence browser

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS): Investigating care practices pointed out to disparities in diagnosis and treatment across European Union.

Prevalence and characteristics of chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) in Poland: a cross-sectional study.

Long Term Follow up of Young People With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Attending a Pediatric Outpatient Service.

Differentiating Post-Polio Syndrome from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Neuropsychological dysfunction in chronic fatigue syndrome and the relation between objective and subjective findings.

Impairments in cognitive performance in chronic fatigue syndrome are common, not related to co-morbid depression but do associate with autonomic dysfunction.

Pain is associated with reduced quality of life and functional status in patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Relationship Between Exercise-induced Oxidative Stress Changes and Parasympathetic Activity in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: An Observational Study in Patients and Healthy Subjects.

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome patients' reports of symptom changes following cognitive behavioural therapy, graded exercise therapy and pacing treatments: Analysis of a primary survey compared with secondary surveys.

Endometriosis as a Comorbid Condition in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS): Secondary Analysis of Data From a CFS Case-Control Study.

Predictors of chronic fatigue in adolescents six months after acute Epstein-Barr virus infection: A prospective cohort study.

Does fatigue and distress in a clinical cohort of adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome correlate with fatigue and distress in their parents?

Evidence for similarity in symptoms and mechanism: The extra-pulmonary symptoms of severe asthma and the polysymptomatic presentation of fibromyalgia.

Hematological and Psychophysiological Correlates of Anomalous Information Reception in Mediums: A Preliminary Exploration.

Cytokine profiles in patients with Q fever fatigue syndrome.

Deconstructing post-exertional malaise: An exploratory factor analysis.

Unexplained exertional intolerance associated with impaired systemic oxygen extraction.

Evidence of Clinical Pathology Abnormalities in People with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) from an Analytic Cross-Sectional Study.

Cognitive and behavioural responses to symptoms in adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome: A case-control study nested within a cohort.

HOW PSYCHIATRIC REFERRALS INFLUENCE STIGMATIZATION IN PATIENTS WITH MYALGIC ENCEPHALOMYELITIS AND CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME: AN EXAMINATION OF AMERICAN AND BRITISH MODELS.

Curated Collections

Neuroinflammation Evidence

Metabolism & Mitochondria

Biomarkers

PEM-Specific Research