Buchwald, D, Pascualy, R, Bombardier, C et al. · Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America · 1994 · DOI
This study looked at sleep problems in 59 people with chronic fatigue, most of whom had ME/CFS. Researchers found that 81% had at least one sleep disorder—most commonly sleep apnea—that might be treatable. Importantly, these sleep problems occurred whether or not people met the full criteria for ME/CFS, suggesting they are a separate issue worth investigating and treating.
This study highlights that sleep disorders are common in ME/CFS and may be independently treatable, rather than simply a symptom of ME/CFS itself. Identifying and treating coexisting sleep disorders could improve quality of life and fatigue severity in chronically fatigued patients, even if ME/CFS itself remains.
This study does not establish whether sleep disorders cause ME/CFS, result from it, or are coincidental. The highly selected patient population screened for sleep symptoms may not represent all ME/CFS patients, limiting generalizability. Correlation between sleep disorders and fatigue does not prove causation.
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 →
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