ME/CFS Evidence Browser — Classified Studies on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

2121–2140 of 6,160 studies

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredLongitudinal

Workers on transformation of the shelter object of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant into an ecologically-safe system show qEEG abnormalities and cognitive dysfunctions: A follow-up study.

Loganovsky, Konstantyn, Perchuk, Iryna, Marazziti, Donatella·The world journal of biological psychiatry : the official journal of the World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry·2016

This study followed 196 workers who helped clean up and secure the damaged Chernobyl nuclear reactor between 2004 and 2008. Researchers tested their brain electrical activity and thinking skills before and after the work. The workers showed changes in brain wave patterns and developed mild memory and concentration problems after exposure to radiation, similar to symptoms seen in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Cognitive Impairment

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclear

Association of mitochondrial DNA variants with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) symptoms.

Hanson, Maureen R, Gu, Zhenglong, Keinan, Alon et al.·Journal of translational medicine·2016

This study looked at whether variations in mitochondrial DNA (the genetic material in the energy-producing parts of our cells) are linked to ME/CFS. Researchers compared genetic samples from ME/CFS patients and healthy people. While they didn't find that specific DNA variants caused the disease itself, they did discover that certain genetic variations were associated with specific symptoms and how severe those symptoms were.

Energy Metabolism

E2 ModerateCohortPEM requiredCross-Sectional

Case definitions integrating empiric and consensus perspectives.

Jason, Leonard A, McManimen, Stephanie, Sunnquist, Madison et al.·Fatigue : biomedicine, health & behavior·2016

This study looked at 556 ME/CFS patients from three countries to understand how doctors should diagnose this condition. The researchers found that patients fall into different groups based on their symptoms: some have chronic fatigue alone, some have fatigue with other medical reasons, and some have ME/CFS with additional symptoms like problems with exercise recovery, brain fog, and sleep issues. The groups with more specific ME/CFS symptoms were significantly more disabled than those with just general fatigue.

SleepPost-Exertional Malaise

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Electroencephalogram characteristics in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Wu, Tong, Qi, Xianghua, Su, Yuan et al.·Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment·2016

Researchers used brain wave recordings (EEG) to study electrical activity in the brains of ME/CFS patients compared to healthy controls. They found that ME/CFS patients had reduced brain activity with certain wave patterns being more prominent, particularly in specific regions of the brain. This suggests that ME/CFS affects how the brain's electrical system functions.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearCase-Control

Genome-wide association analysis identifies genetic variations in subjects with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.

Schlauch, K A, Khaiboullina, S F, De Meirleir, K L et al.·Translational psychiatry·2016

Researchers compared the genes of people with ME/CFS to healthy people and found 442 genetic differences that may be linked to the condition. While most of these differences were in non-coding parts of the genome, some were in actual genes that produce proteins, including two that change how proteins work. Some genetic differences were found in genes related to the immune system's T-cells, which fight infection.

Immune System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Autonomic correlations with MRI are abnormal in the brainstem vasomotor centre in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Barnden, Leighton R, Kwiatek, Richard, Crouch, Benjamin et al.·NeuroImage. Clinical·2016

This study examined whether blood pressure and heart rate patterns in ME/CFS patients are connected to differences in how their brains are structured or functioning. Researchers used 24-hour blood pressure monitoring and brain MRI scans in 25 ME/CFS patients and 25 healthy people, looking for correlations between the two. They found that ME/CFS patients showed unusual patterns in how their brainstem—the part of the brain that controls automatic functions like heart rate and blood pressure—communicated with other brain regions, suggesting a communication problem rather than structural damage.

Autonomic Nervous System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Aberrant Resting-State Functional Connectivity in the Salience Network of Adolescent Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Wortinger, Laura Anne, Endestad, Tor, Melinder, Annika Maria D et al.·PloS one·2016

This study looked at how the brains of teenagers with ME/CFS show different activity patterns compared to healthy teenagers. Researchers used brain imaging to examine a network called the salience network, which helps the brain notice important signals like pain and fatigue. They found that teenagers with ME/CFS had weaker connections in this network, and the strength of these connections was linked to how severe their fatigue and pain symptoms were.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearObservational

Investigation of suspected chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalopathy.

Owe, Jone Furlund, Næss, Halvor, Gjerde, Ivar Otto et al.·Tidsskrift for den Norske laegeforening : tidsskrift for praktisk medicin, ny raekke·2016

This study looked at 365 people who came to a hospital's neurology department because they thought they might have ME/CFS. The doctors found that only about 13% actually had ME/CFS, while nearly half of the patients had mental health or stress-related conditions instead. The study highlights how important it is for doctors to do thorough checks before deciding someone has ME/CFS, since other treatable conditions can cause similar fatigue symptoms.

Diagnostics

E2 ModerateMechanismPEM unclearMechanistic

Antibodies to β adrenergic and muscarinic cholinergic receptors in patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Loebel, Madlen, Grabowski, Patricia, Heidecke, Harald et al.·Brain, behavior, and immunity·2016

Researchers tested whether ME/CFS patients have unusually high levels of antibodies (immune proteins) that attack nerve signaling receptors in the body. They found that about 30% of ME/CFS patients had elevated antibodies against certain receptors involved in adrenaline and acetylcholine signaling—chemicals that control heart rate, breathing, and other automatic body functions. Importantly, patients who received rituximab (a treatment that depletes B cells) and improved showed decreases in these antibody levels, suggesting a possible link between these antibodies and disease activity.

BiomarkersImmune System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredLongitudinal

Cow's milk protein intolerance in adolescents and young adults with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Rowe, Peter C, Marden, Colleen L, Jasion, Samantha E et al.·Acta paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992)·2016

This study looked at whether young people with ME/CFS often have problems digesting cow's milk protein. Researchers found that about 1 in 3 young patients with ME/CFS had milk protein intolerance, which caused stomach problems like reflux and pain. When these patients stopped eating milk products, their stomach symptoms improved and their quality of life got better.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Comprehensively understanding fatigue in patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms.

Scherber, Robyn M, Kosiorek, Heidi E, Senyak, Zhenya et al.·Cancer·2016

This study surveyed nearly 1,800 people with myeloproliferative neoplasms (blood cancers) about their fatigue. Researchers found that fatigue was very common and severe, and it was worse in people who were overweight, used alcohol or tobacco, didn't exercise, or had other conditions like fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome. The study also found that many people with these blood cancers had depression, which was linked to their fatigue.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredObservational

Dry Eye Syndrome Risks in Patients With Fibromyalgia: A National Retrospective Cohort Study.

Chen, Chao-Hsien, Yang, Tse-Yen, Lin, Cheng-Li et al.·Medicine·2016

This study found that people with fibromyalgia are more likely to develop dry eye syndrome than people without fibromyalgia. Younger fibromyalgia patients (under 50) and those with sleep problems or other conditions like irritable bowel syndrome had even higher risks of developing dry eyes. The researchers used health insurance records from Taiwan to track over 25,000 fibromyalgia patients and compare them to over 100,000 people without fibromyalgia.

Sleep

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredLongitudinal

Tracking post-infectious fatigue in clinic using routine Lab tests.

Harvey, Jeanna M, Broderick, Gordon, Bowie, Alanna et al.·BMC pediatrics·2016

Researchers followed 301 teenagers who had infectious mononucleosis to see who would develop chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). They found that measuring common blood tests over 2 years—including stress hormones, sex hormones, and immune cell counts—might help doctors identify which patients are at risk and confirm the diagnosis. Only 4% of the teens developed CFS, but specific blood markers showed different patterns in those who did compared to those who recovered normally.

Biomarkers

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearObservational

Mortality of people with chronic fatigue syndrome: a retrospective cohort study in England and Wales from the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust Biomedical Research Centre (SLaM BRC) Clinical Record Interactive Search (CRIS) Register.

Roberts, Emmert, Wessely, Simon, Chalder, Trudie et al.·Lancet (London, England)·2016

This study looked at whether people with ME/CFS die at higher rates than the general population. Researchers examined medical records of 2,147 people diagnosed with ME/CFS in England and Wales over 7 years and found they did not have higher overall death rates. However, the study did find a concerning increase in deaths by suicide among people with ME/CFS, suggesting that mental health support is particularly important for this group.

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Statistically modelling the relationships between Type D personality and social support, health behaviors and symptom severity in chronic illness groups.

Horwood, Sharon, Anglim, Jeromy, Tooley, Greg·Psychology & health·2016

This study looked at whether certain personality traits (called Type D personality, which involves being prone to worry and keeping emotions to yourself) are more common in people with chronic illnesses like ME/CFS and fibromyalgia, and whether these traits affect health behaviors, social support, and symptom severity. Researchers surveyed 182 healthy people and 207 people with various chronic illnesses, and found that Type D personality was more common in the chronic illness groups. The study suggests that personality traits may influence how symptoms develop and how well people manage their conditions across different chronic diseases.

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredObservational

Outcomes and predictors of response from an optimised, multidisciplinary intervention for chronic fatigue states.

Sandler, C X, Hamilton, B A, Horsfield, S L et al.·Internal medicine journal·2016

This study tested a 12-week treatment program combining talk therapy (CBT) and supervised exercise for people with chronic fatigue. The program helped about 35% of patients feel significantly better, with improvements lasting at least 6 months. However, some patients (especially men and those with higher pain levels) were less likely to improve, and a small number actually felt worse.

Interventions

E2 ModerateCohortPEM requiredCross-Sectional

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) symptom-based phenotypes in two clinical cohorts of adult patients in the UK and The Netherlands.

Collin, Simon M, Nikolaus, Stephanie, Heron, Jon et al.·Journal of psychosomatic research·2016

This study looked at how ME/CFS symptoms vary from person to person by analyzing data from over 8,000 patients in the UK and Netherlands. Researchers found that ME/CFS patients fall into about 6 different groups based on which symptoms they experience—some have many symptoms, some mainly have pain, and others have very few symptoms beyond the core three (fatigue, brain fog, and sleep problems). Women and people who have been ill longer tended to have more symptoms overall.

Post-Exertional Malaise

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Self-critical perfectionism predicts lower cortisol response to experimental stress in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Kempke, Stefan, Luyten, Patrick, Mayes, Linda C et al.·Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association·2016

This study looked at whether people with ME/CFS who tend to be hard on themselves and set unrealistically high standards (self-critical perfectionism) have a different stress response than others. Researchers gave 41 women with ME/CFS a stressful test and measured their cortisol (a stress hormone) levels. They found that those with higher self-critical perfectionism felt more stressed mentally, but their bodies produced less cortisol in response—suggesting their stress system isn't working as well as it should.

Endocrine Disruption

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Factors in Patient Empowerment: A Survey of an Online Patient Research Network.

Chiauzzi, Emil, DasMahapatra, Pronabesh, Cochin, Elisenda et al.·The patient·2016

This study asked nearly 4,000 patients with various chronic illnesses—including ME/CFS—about how involved they feel in managing their own health. Researchers found that patients often struggle to align their treatment goals with their doctors and don't always get enough time with their physicians. The study identified two main factors that help patients feel empowered: having positive interactions with their healthcare providers and feeling knowledgeable and in control of their care.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredObservational

[The influence of physical load on the propriate immune and physiological parameters.].

Milicková, M, Zákovská, A, Chlíbková, D·Ceskoslovenska fysiologie·2016

This study looked at how intense physical exercise affects the immune system by measuring antibodies (immune proteins) in ultramarathon runners before and after a race. The researchers found that two types of antibodies—IgA and IgG—increased after the race, suggesting that extreme physical stress temporarily changes how the immune system works. Understanding these changes may help explain why some people develop chronic fatigue after intense exercise.

Immune System

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Evidence browser

Workers on transformation of the shelter object of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant into an ecologically-safe system show qEEG abnormalities and cognitive dysfunctions: A follow-up study.

Association of mitochondrial DNA variants with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) symptoms.

Case definitions integrating empiric and consensus perspectives.

Electroencephalogram characteristics in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Genome-wide association analysis identifies genetic variations in subjects with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.

Autonomic correlations with MRI are abnormal in the brainstem vasomotor centre in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Aberrant Resting-State Functional Connectivity in the Salience Network of Adolescent Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Investigation of suspected chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalopathy.

Antibodies to β adrenergic and muscarinic cholinergic receptors in patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Cow's milk protein intolerance in adolescents and young adults with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Comprehensively understanding fatigue in patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms.

Dry Eye Syndrome Risks in Patients With Fibromyalgia: A National Retrospective Cohort Study.

Tracking post-infectious fatigue in clinic using routine Lab tests.

Mortality of people with chronic fatigue syndrome: a retrospective cohort study in England and Wales from the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust Biomedical Research Centre (SLaM BRC) Clinical Record Interactive Search (CRIS) Register.

Statistically modelling the relationships between Type D personality and social support, health behaviors and symptom severity in chronic illness groups.

Outcomes and predictors of response from an optimised, multidisciplinary intervention for chronic fatigue states.

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) symptom-based phenotypes in two clinical cohorts of adult patients in the UK and The Netherlands.

Self-critical perfectionism predicts lower cortisol response to experimental stress in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Factors in Patient Empowerment: A Survey of an Online Patient Research Network.

[The influence of physical load on the propriate immune and physiological parameters.].

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