ME/CFS Evidence Browser — Classified Studies on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

3421–3440 of 6,161 studies

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Estimating the prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome among nurses.

Jason, L A, Wagner, L, Rosenthal, S et al.·The American journal of medicine·1998

This study looked at how many nurses have ME/CFS by sending questionnaires to two groups of nurses and then doing more detailed evaluations on those with CFS-like symptoms. The researchers found that nurses may get ME/CFS at higher rates than the general population, possibly because of job-related stress such as shift work, virus exposure, and workplace hazards. This suggests nurses might be at special risk for developing this illness.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Muscle fibre characteristics and lactate responses to exercise in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Lane, R J, Barrett, M C, Woodrow, D et al.·Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry·1998

Researchers examined muscle samples from 105 ME/CFS patients to understand why they have abnormal responses to exercise, particularly high lactate levels. They found that patients with high lactate responses had fewer type 1 muscle fibres (which are energy-efficient), but this wasn't because they were inactive—it appeared to be a specific muscle problem related to ME/CFS itself.

Post-Exertional Malaise

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

The relationship between temporomandibular disorders and stress-associated syndromes.

Korszun, A, Papadopoulos, E, Demitrack, M et al.·Oral surgery, oral medicine, oral pathology, oral radiology, and endodontics·1998

This study looked at how often jaw joint problems (temporomandibular disorder) occur together with ME/CFS and fibromyalgia. Researchers found that 42% of patients with these conditions also had jaw problems, and most of these patients had developed their general symptoms before their jaw pain started. Interestingly, most were treated only for the jaw problem with bite splints, even though they had multiple related conditions.

Endocrine Disruption

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCase-Control

Chronic fatigue syndrome in psychiatric patients: lifetime and premorbid personal history of physical health.

Endicott, N A·Psychosomatic medicine·1998

This study compared 46 ME/CFS patients with two groups of psychiatric patients without ME/CFS to see if there were differences in their past physical health histories. Researchers found that ME/CFS patients reported more lifetime infections (including repeated mono-like illnesses), irritable bowel syndrome, and allergies before developing ME/CFS than the comparison groups. This suggests that a pattern of poor overall physical health earlier in life may play a role in developing ME/CFS.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearCross-Sectional

Secretion of growth hormone in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Berwaerts, J, Moorkens, G, Abs, R·Growth hormone & IGF research : official journal of the Growth Hormone Research Society and the International IGF Research Society·1998

This study looked at growth hormone levels in people with ME/CFS, because low growth hormone has been seen in related conditions like fibromyalgia. Researchers tested 20 ME/CFS patients and compared them to healthy controls, measuring growth hormone in different ways. They found that ME/CFS patients had lower levels of a growth hormone marker (IGF-I) and tended to produce less growth hormone at night, though other growth hormone tests were similar between groups.

Endocrine Disruption

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

A comparison of salivary cortisol in chronic fatigue syndrome, community depression and healthy controls.

Strickland, P, Morriss, R, Wearden, A et al.·Journal of affective disorders·1998

This study measured cortisol (a stress hormone) in saliva from women with ME/CFS, women with depression, and healthy women to see if cortisol levels differed between groups. Researchers found that women with ME/CFS had lower cortisol levels, especially in the evening and morning, compared to both depressed and healthy women. This suggests that ME/CFS involves different biological changes than depression.

Endocrine Disruption

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCase-Control

Reproductive correlates of chronic fatigue syndrome.

Harlow, B L, Signorello, L B, Hall, J E et al.·The American journal of medicine·1998

This study compared reproductive and menstrual histories in women with ME/CFS to healthy women without the condition. Women with ME/CFS reported more gynecologic problems and irregular menstrual cycles, and researchers found signs suggesting ovarian dysfunction—such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)—occurred more often in the ME/CFS group. The authors propose that hormonal imbalances affecting egg release may contribute to ME/CFS by reducing protective immune effects from certain hormones.

Immune System

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Chronic fatigue syndrome and seasonal affective disorder: comorbidity, diagnostic overlap, and implications for treatment.

Terman, M, Levine, S M, Terman, J S et al.·The American journal of medicine·1998

This study looked at whether ME/CFS symptoms get worse during winter months, similar to seasonal depression. Researchers asked 110 ME/CFS patients about their symptoms in summer and winter, and found that about one-third showed a seasonal pattern with winter worsening. This suggests that some ME/CFS patients might benefit from light therapy, a treatment commonly used for seasonal depression.

Sleep

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

[31P-mr spectroscopy of peripheral skeletal musculature under load: demonstration of normal energy metabolites compared with metabolic muscle diseases].

Block, W, Träber, F, Kuhl, C K et al.·RoFo : Fortschritte auf dem Gebiete der Rontgenstrahlen und der Nuklearmedizin·1998

Researchers used a special MRI scanner to measure how muscles use energy during exercise by looking at chemical changes in the calf. They found that healthy people used two different types of energy pathways during exercise, while people with ME/CFS showed unusual resting energy levels but normal recovery after exercise—unlike patients with genetic metabolic disorders, whose muscles recovered very slowly.

Biomarkers

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Screening instruments for psychiatric morbidity in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Morriss, R K, Wearden, A J·Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine·1998

This study tested whether two common questionnaires can reliably detect anxiety and depression in ME/CFS patients. Researchers found that the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HAD) works well for this purpose, but the Medical Outcome Survey's mental health scale produced too many false alarms and is not recommended for ME/CFS screening.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredObservational

Alteration of spatial-temporal parameters of gait in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients.

Saggini, R, Pizzigallo, E, Vecchiet, J et al.·Journal of the neurological sciences·1998

This study looked at how people with ME/CFS walk compared to healthy people. Researchers used specialized movement analysis tools to measure walking patterns in 12 patients and found clear differences in how smoothly and symmetrically they walked. Interestingly, these walking problems appeared right from the start of walking, not after fatigue set in, suggesting the issue may be related to how the brain controls movement rather than muscle tiredness.

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredLongitudinal

Longitudinal changes associated with improvement in chronic fatigue patients.

Russo, J, Katon, W, Clark, M et al.·Journal of psychosomatic research·1998

Researchers followed people with chronic fatigue for 2.5 years to see what changes were linked to getting better. They found that improvements in mood, reduction in psychiatric symptoms, and disappearance of physical examination findings were connected to people feeling less fatigued, functioning better, and returning to work. People who either never had chronic fatigue syndrome or only had it at the start of the study showed the most improvement.

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredObservational

Predictors of a medical-offset effect among patients receiving antidepressant therapy.

Thompson, D, Hylan, T R, McMullen, W et al.·The American journal of psychiatry·1998

This study looked at insurance records from nearly 1,700 people who started taking antidepressants for depression in the early 1990s. The researchers wanted to understand whether treating depression could also reduce overall healthcare costs. They found that patients with certain conditions—including chronic fatigue syndrome, anxiety, heart disease, and cancer—who stayed on antidepressants for at least 6 months tended to have lower medical bills overall.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearCross-Sectional

[Incidence and clinical relevance of antibodies to phospholipids, serotonin and ganglioside in patients with sudden deafness and progressive inner ear hearing loss].

Heller, U, Becker, E W, Zenner, H P et al.·HNO·1998

This study looked at whether certain antibodies (proteins the immune system makes) are found more often in people with sudden or progressive hearing loss. Researchers found that about half of hearing loss patients had antibodies against phospholipids and about half to two-thirds had antibodies against serotonin and gangliosides. Interestingly, some patients with hearing loss also had symptoms of ME/CFS and fibromyalgia, suggesting these conditions may be connected through shared immune system abnormalities.

Immune System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

The low dose ACTH test in chronic fatigue syndrome and in health.

Scott, L V, Medbak, S, Dinan, T G·Clinical endocrinology·1998

This study tested whether people with ME/CFS have a subtle problem with their stress hormone system, specifically the pituitary gland's ability to signal the adrenal glands to release cortisol. Using a sensitive test with a very small dose of ACTH (a hormone that triggers cortisol release), researchers found that people with ME/CFS showed a weaker cortisol response than healthy people, suggesting their adrenal system may not be functioning optimally.

Endocrine Disruption

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearCase-Control

Elevation of bioactive transforming growth factor-beta in serum from patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Bennett, A L, Chao, C C, Hu, S et al.·Journal of clinical immunology·1997

Researchers measured a protein called TGF-beta in the blood of ME/CFS patients and compared it to healthy people and patients with other diseases like lupus and multiple sclerosis. They found that ME/CFS patients had significantly higher levels of this protein than all the other groups studied. This suggests that TGF-beta might play a role in ME/CFS, though more research is needed to understand exactly how.

Immune System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearObservational

Magnesium deficit in a sample of the Belgian population presenting with chronic fatigue.

Moorkens, G, Manuel y Keenoy, B, Vertommen, J et al.·Magnesium research·1997

This study tested whether people with chronic fatigue have low magnesium levels. Researchers gave 97 patients a special magnesium test and found that 44 had magnesium deficiency. After magnesium supplements, their bodies retained less magnesium, suggesting the treatment may have helped. However, the researchers did not find a clear link between low magnesium and chronic fatigue syndrome itself.

Biomarkers

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Comparison of heart rate variability in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and controls.

Yataco, A, Talo, H, Rowe, P et al.·Clinical autonomic research : official journal of the Clinical Autonomic Research Society·1997

Researchers tested whether ME/CFS patients have problems with their autonomic nervous system (the system that automatically controls heart rate, blood pressure, and other vital functions). They measured heart rate variability—natural variations in heart rate—in ME/CFS patients and healthy controls while lying down and standing up. They found that the heart rate patterns were similar between the two groups both at rest and when standing, suggesting that basic autonomic function may not be obviously different in ME/CFS.

Autonomic Nervous System

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

The chronic fatigue syndrome and hyperventilation.

Bazelmans, E, Bleijenberg, G, Vercoulen, J H et al.·Journal of psychosomatic research·1997

This study looked at whether rapid, shallow breathing (hyperventilation) causes ME/CFS or makes it worse. Researchers compared ME/CFS patients with people who hyperventilate but don't have ME/CFS, and healthy people. While ME/CFS patients did show signs of hyperventilation more often than healthy controls, having hyperventilation didn't actually make their fatigue or other symptoms worse.

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Physical and mental problems attributed to dental amalgam fillings: a descriptive study of 99 self-referred patients compared with 272 controls.

Malt, U F, Nerdrum, P, Oppedal, B et al.·Psychosomatic medicine·1997

This study looked at 99 people who believed their symptoms were caused by mercury in dental fillings and compared them to 272 control subjects without these concerns. The dental-amalgam group reported far more physical symptoms across their bodies, anxiety, depression, and fatigue. The researchers found that many in this group had mental health conditions like anxiety disorders and depression, and about one-third reported symptoms similar to chronic fatigue syndrome.

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Estimating the prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome among nurses.

Muscle fibre characteristics and lactate responses to exercise in chronic fatigue syndrome.

The relationship between temporomandibular disorders and stress-associated syndromes.

Chronic fatigue syndrome in psychiatric patients: lifetime and premorbid personal history of physical health.

Secretion of growth hormone in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

A comparison of salivary cortisol in chronic fatigue syndrome, community depression and healthy controls.

Reproductive correlates of chronic fatigue syndrome.

Chronic fatigue syndrome and seasonal affective disorder: comorbidity, diagnostic overlap, and implications for treatment.

[31P-mr spectroscopy of peripheral skeletal musculature under load: demonstration of normal energy metabolites compared with metabolic muscle diseases].

Screening instruments for psychiatric morbidity in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Alteration of spatial-temporal parameters of gait in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients.

Longitudinal changes associated with improvement in chronic fatigue patients.

Predictors of a medical-offset effect among patients receiving antidepressant therapy.

[Incidence and clinical relevance of antibodies to phospholipids, serotonin and ganglioside in patients with sudden deafness and progressive inner ear hearing loss].

The low dose ACTH test in chronic fatigue syndrome and in health.

Elevation of bioactive transforming growth factor-beta in serum from patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Magnesium deficit in a sample of the Belgian population presenting with chronic fatigue.

Comparison of heart rate variability in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and controls.

The chronic fatigue syndrome and hyperventilation.

Physical and mental problems attributed to dental amalgam fillings: a descriptive study of 99 self-referred patients compared with 272 controls.

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