Fischer, David Benjamin, William, Arsani Hany, Strauss, Adam Campbell et al. · Fatigue : biomedicine, health & behavior · 2014 · DOI
This review examines potential blood tests and biological markers that could help doctors better understand and diagnose ME/CFS. Currently, ME/CFS is diagnosed mainly based on symptoms because we lack clear objective tests. The authors suggest that identifying specific biomarkers—measurable biological signs—could help identify different subtypes of ME/CFS, which might respond better to different treatments.
ME/CFS currently lacks objective diagnostic criteria, leading to inconsistent diagnosis and treatment. Identifying reliable biomarkers could transform how doctors recognize the disease, distinguish it from other conditions, and potentially identify subgroups that require different treatment approaches—ultimately improving patient care and accelerating research.
This review does not prove that any specific biomarker is definitively diagnostic for ME/CFS or that biomarker-based subtypes actually exist clinically. It does not provide original experimental data validating proposed biomarkers, nor does it demonstrate that biomarker-guided treatment would be superior to current approaches. The findings represent a synthesis of existing literature and expert opinion rather than new clinical evidence.
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 →
Spotted an error in this entry? Report it →