ME/CFS Evidence Browser — Classified Studies on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

3481–3500 of 6,188 studies

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

High frequency of autoantibodies to insoluble cellular antigens in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

von Mikecz, A, Konstantinov, K, Buchwald, D S et al.·Arthritis and rheumatism·1997

Researchers tested blood samples from 60 ME/CFS patients and found that 83% had unusual antibodies (immune proteins) attacking their own cells—specifically targeting proteins that form the structural framework inside and around cell nuclei. These antibodies were rarely seen in healthy people (only 17%), suggesting this autoimmune pattern might be unique to ME/CFS and could potentially help doctors identify the disease.

Immune System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearCross-Sectional

An investigation of sympathetic hypersensitivity in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Sendrowski, D P, Buker, E A, Gee, S S·Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry·1997

Researchers tested whether ME/CFS patients have unusually sensitive nerves that control pupil size, similar to what is seen in fibromyalgia. They applied eye drops to 29 ME/CFS patients and 33 healthy controls and measured how much the pupils dilated. The results showed no significant difference between the two groups, suggesting that ME/CFS patients do not have this type of nerve sensitivity.

Autonomic Nervous System

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Outcomes of occupational stressors on nurses: chronic fatigue syndrome--related symptoms.

Wagner, L I, Jason, L A·NursingConnections·1997

This study looked at whether job stress in nurses is connected to ME/CFS-like symptoms. Researchers followed 202 nurses with prolonged exhaustion for one year, asking about their symptoms and work conditions. They found that specific workplace hazards—like fear of accidents and poor working environments—were linked to ME/CFS-related symptoms, though not all stressed nurses developed these symptoms.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Does the chronic fatigue syndrome involve the autonomic nervous system?

Freeman, R, Komaroff, A L·The American journal of medicine·1997

This study tested whether ME/CFS patients have problems with their autonomic nervous system—the part of the nervous system that controls automatic functions like heart rate and blood pressure. Researchers found that ME/CFS patients had abnormal heart rate and blood pressure responses during standing and tilting tests, and their nervous system wasn't regulating these responses properly. The findings suggest that either deconditioning from reduced activity, a viral infection damaging the nervous system, or both could explain why many ME/CFS patients feel dizzy or faint when standing up.

Autonomic Nervous System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Do patients with "pure" chronic fatigue syndrome (neurasthenia) have abnormal sleep?

Sharpley, A, Clements, A, Hawton, K et al.·Psychosomatic medicine·1997

This study compared sleep in 20 people with ME/CFS (who did not have depression, anxiety, or other sleep disorders) to 20 healthy people. Although ME/CFS patients reported feeling like they had poor, unrefreshing sleep and took daytime naps, objective sleep measurements showed surprisingly few differences—most patients actually slept a normal amount of time at night, though they spent longer lying awake after first falling asleep.

Sleep

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and accurate feeling-of-knowing judgments.

Lakein, D A, Fantie, B D, Grafman, J et al.·Journal of clinical psychology·1997

Many people with ME/CFS say they have memory problems, but doctors have had trouble proving this in tests. This study looked at whether the issue might be that ME/CFS patients are bad at judging how confident they should be about their memories. When researchers tested both ME/CFS patients and healthy people on a trivia quiz, they found that both groups were equally good at knowing when they probably got an answer right—even though the ME/CFS patients reported much worse fatigue and cognitive symptoms.

Cognitive Impairment

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 requiredLongitudinal

Coping and other predictors of outcome in chronic fatigue syndrome: a 1-year follow-up.

Ray, C, Jefferies, S, Weir, W R·Journal of psychosomatic research·1997

This study followed 137 ME/CFS patients for one year to see what factors predicted whether they improved or got worse. About two-thirds of patients reported some improvement over the year. The results showed that people with longer illness duration, cognitive difficulties, and multiple body symptoms tended to have worse outcomes, while mental health symptoms like anxiety and depression did not predict outcomes. Interestingly, patients who believed they could influence their condition through their own actions did better, even if they had to adjust their activities around their illness.

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

A population-based incidence study of chronic fatigue.

Lawrie, S M, Manders, D N, Geddes, J R et al.·Psychological medicine·1997

This study looked at how many people develop chronic fatigue in the general population (rather than just in doctor's offices), and what factors might increase the risk. Researchers found that people who were already somewhat fatigued before the study began were more likely to develop chronic fatigue later on. Interestingly, emotional difficulties and psychiatric conditions appeared less common in ME/CFS patients when researchers carefully adjusted for fatigue itself.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Precipitating factors for the chronic fatigue syndrome.

Salit, I E·Journal of psychiatric research·1997

This study looked at what triggered ME/CFS in 134 patients by asking them about their medical history, infections, and life events. While many patients reported an illness before ME/CFS started, actual proof of a specific infection was rare. Importantly, the researchers found that stressful life events in the year before ME/CFS onset were very common in patients but uncommon in healthy people, suggesting multiple different factors may trigger the illness rather than one single cause.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCase-Control

Brain MR in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Greco, A, Tannock, C, Brostoff, J et al.·AJNR. American journal of neuroradiology·1997

Researchers used brain MRI scans to look for white matter abnormalities (areas of damage in the brain's connecting tissue) in 43 ME/CFS patients and compared them to 43 healthy control subjects. While some abnormalities were found in both groups, there was no pattern of brain changes that was unique to ME/CFS, suggesting that MRI scans alone cannot diagnose the condition.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM unclearObservational

Effect of noise stress on chronic fatigue syndrome patients.

Beh, H C·The Journal of nervous and mental disease·1997

This study looked at how noise affects people with ME/CFS, examining whether environmental sounds make their symptoms worse. The research observed how patients responded to noise stress as part of understanding the condition better. This type of research helps identify triggers that may worsen fatigue and other ME/CFS symptoms.

Pain and Sensitization

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 unclearCross-Sectional

[Prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome and primary fibromyalgia syndrome in The Netherlands].

Bazelmans, E, Vercoulen, J H, Galama, J M et al.·Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde·1997

This study asked general doctors across the Netherlands how many ME/CFS and fibromyalgia patients they saw in their practices. Based on their responses, researchers estimated that about 112 out of every 100,000 people in the Netherlands have ME/CFS, and 157 out of every 100,000 have fibromyalgia. The study found that both conditions affect mostly women and tend to develop in early-to-middle adulthood.

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCase-Control

Immune responses associated with chronic fatigue syndrome: a case-control study.

Mawle, A C, Nisenbaum, R, Dobbins, J G et al.·The Journal of infectious diseases·1997

Researchers compared immune system measurements between ME/CFS patients and healthy controls to see if immune differences could reliably detect the illness. While previous studies reported many immune differences, this careful study found most standard immune tests showed no difference between patients and controls. However, when they looked at specific subgroups—such as patients whose illness started suddenly versus gradually—they did find some immune differences, suggesting that ME/CFS may not be a single uniform immune condition.

Immune System

E2 ModerateCohortPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Chronic fatigue syndrome criteria in patients with other forms of unexplained chronic fatigue.

Chester, A C·Journal of psychiatric research·1997

This study looked at nearly 300 young people to see how many had symptoms similar to ME/CFS even though they didn't have a confirmed ME/CFS diagnosis. The researchers found that people with unexplained chronic fatigue shared many symptoms with ME/CFS patients, including fever, sore lymph nodes, muscle weakness, muscle pain, headaches, joint pain, brain fog, and sleep problems. This suggests that ME/CFS symptoms are common in people with other types of long-lasting, unexplained tiredness.

Diagnostics

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

The relation of sleep difficulties to fatigue, mood and disability in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Morriss, R K, Wearden, A J, Battersby, L·Journal of psychosomatic research·1997

This study looked at sleep problems in 69 people with ME/CFS who had no mental health conditions and 58 with ME/CFS plus depression or anxiety. Researchers found that sleep difficulties are common in ME/CFS but are usually caused by the illness itself rather than depression. People with ME/CFS often took naps and woke up from pain, and when their sleep got worse, their ME/CFS symptoms often worsened too.

Sleep

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Neuropsychological and psychological functioning in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Kane, R L, Gantz, N M, DiPino, R K·Neuropsychiatry, neuropsychology, and behavioral neurology·1997

This study compared 17 people with ME/CFS to 17 healthy controls on thinking and memory tests, as well as psychological well-being. While ME/CFS patients reported feeling cognitively foggy, most formal test scores were similar between groups. However, ME/CFS patients showed significantly higher levels of psychological distress, anxiety, and depression compared to controls.

Cognitive Impairment

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Patterns of utilization of medical care and perceptions of the relationship between doctor and patient with chronic illness including chronic fatigue syndrome.

Twemlow, S W, Bradshaw, S L, Coyne, L et al.·Psychological reports·1997

This study surveyed 609 people with ME/CFS to understand how their relationships with doctors differ from those of other patients with medical conditions. People with ME/CFS reported missing about 65 days of work per year due to illness, experienced more side effects from medical treatments, spent more money on healthcare, and visited more specialists than patients with typical medical conditions. The researchers found that doctors may need to pay more attention to how ME/CFS patients perceive their illness and their doctor-patient relationship, as these beliefs can affect how well treatments work.

E2 ModerateBehavioralPEM not requiredCross-Sectional

Screening for psychiatric disorders in chronic fatigue and chronic fatigue syndrome.

Buchwald, D, Pearlman, T, Kith, P et al.·Journal of psychosomatic research·1997

This study looked at how common mental health conditions are in people with chronic fatigue and ME/CFS, and tested whether a simple questionnaire could help identify these conditions. Researchers interviewed 281 patients and found that about one-third had a current mental health disorder, while over 80% had experienced one at some point in their lives. A screening tool called the General Health Questionnaire performed reasonably well at spotting current psychiatric conditions, though it wasn't perfect.

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High frequency of autoantibodies to insoluble cellular antigens in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.

An investigation of sympathetic hypersensitivity in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Outcomes of occupational stressors on nurses: chronic fatigue syndrome--related symptoms.

Does the chronic fatigue syndrome involve the autonomic nervous system?

Do patients with "pure" chronic fatigue syndrome (neurasthenia) have abnormal sleep?

Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and accurate feeling-of-knowing judgments.

The chronic fatigue syndrome and hyperventilation.

Coping and other predictors of outcome in chronic fatigue syndrome: a 1-year follow-up.

A population-based incidence study of chronic fatigue.

Precipitating factors for the chronic fatigue syndrome.

Brain MR in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Effect of noise stress on chronic fatigue syndrome patients.

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

[Prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome and primary fibromyalgia syndrome in The Netherlands].

Immune responses associated with chronic fatigue syndrome: a case-control study.

Chronic fatigue syndrome criteria in patients with other forms of unexplained chronic fatigue.

The relation of sleep difficulties to fatigue, mood and disability in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Neuropsychological and psychological functioning in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Patterns of utilization of medical care and perceptions of the relationship between doctor and patient with chronic illness including chronic fatigue syndrome.

Screening for psychiatric disorders in chronic fatigue and chronic fatigue syndrome.

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