Prens, Lisette M, Bouwman, Klasiena, Troelstra, Lisa D et al. · The British journal of dermatology · 2022 · DOI
This study looked at how common hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), a chronic inflammatory skin condition, is in the Netherlands, and what health problems tend to occur alongside it. Researchers surveyed over 56,000 people and found that people with HS were more likely to also have fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, and migraines. The study suggests these conditions may share common underlying causes.
This study provides important evidence that ME/CFS co-occurs significantly with hidradenitis suppurativa and other inflammatory conditions, suggesting these diseases may share common pathogenic mechanisms. Understanding these associations can help researchers identify shared biological pathways and may improve clinical recognition and management of comorbidities in ME/CFS patients.
This study does not establish causation—it only shows that HS and ME/CFS occur together more frequently than expected by chance. The self-reported nature of diagnoses means we cannot confirm that participants truly had HS or CFS as clinically diagnosed conditions. Cross-sectional design prevents determining whether one condition causes the other or if they share a common underlying cause.
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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