Johnson, S K · Journal of health psychology · 1999 · DOI
This 1999 guide provides healthcare providers and patients with practical methods for evaluating and treating chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The authors reviewed existing evidence to create a framework for assessment—including tests and questionnaires—and outlined treatment approaches. This work aims to help clinicians better recognize and manage ME/CFS in their patients.
This study addresses a critical need in ME/CFS care: standardized, evidence-based approaches to diagnosis and treatment. By providing clinicians with practical assessment tools and treatment frameworks, it helps improve consistency and quality of care for patients who often face diagnostic delays and variable management strategies.
This methods paper does not establish causation for ME/CFS symptoms or prove efficacy of any single treatment approach through primary data collection. It cannot determine whether recommended assessments or treatments work better than alternatives, as it synthesizes existing literature rather than conducting original clinical trials.
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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