Leonard A Jason1, Ben Z Katz2, Madison Sunnquist3, Chelsea Torres3, Joseph Cotler3, Shaun Bhatia3. 1. Center for Community Research, DePaul University, 990 W. Fullerton Ave., Suite 3100, Chicago, IL 60614, USA. 2. Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, USA. 3. DePaul University, Chicago, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Most pediatric prevalence studies of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) have been based upon data from tertiary care centers, a process known for systematic biases such as excluding youth of lower socioeconomic status and those less likely to have access to health care. In addition, most pediatric ME/CFS epidemiologic studies have not included a thorough medical and psychiatric examination. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of pediatric ME/CFS from an ethnically and sociodemographically diverse community-based random sample. METHOD: A sample of 10,119 youth aged 5-17 from 5622 households in the Chicagoland area were screened. Following evaluations, a team of physicians made final diagnoses. Youth were given a diagnosis of ME/CFS if they met criteria for three selected case definitions. A probabilistic, multi-stage formula was used for final prevalence calculations. RESULTS: The prevalence of pediatric ME/CFS was 0.75%, with a higher percentage being African American and Latinx than Caucasian. Of the youth diagnosed with ME/CFS, less than 5% had been previously diagnosed with the illness. CONCLUSIONS: Many youth with the illness have not been previously diagnosed with ME/CFS. These findings point to the need for better ways to identify and diagnose youth with this illness.
BACKGROUND: Most pediatric prevalence studies of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) have been based upon data from tertiary care centers, a process known for systematic biases such as excluding youth of lower socioeconomic status and those less likely to have access to health care. In addition, most pediatric ME/CFS epidemiologic studies have not included a thorough medical and psychiatric examination. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of pediatric ME/CFS from an ethnically and sociodemographically diverse community-based random sample. METHOD: A sample of 10,119 youth aged 5-17 from 5622 households in the Chicagoland area were screened. Following evaluations, a team of physicians made final diagnoses. Youth were given a diagnosis of ME/CFS if they met criteria for three selected case definitions. A probabilistic, multi-stage formula was used for final prevalence calculations. RESULTS: The prevalence of pediatric ME/CFS was 0.75%, with a higher percentage being African American and Latinx than Caucasian. Of the youth diagnosed with ME/CFS, less than 5% had been previously diagnosed with the illness. CONCLUSIONS: Many youth with the illness have not been previously diagnosed with ME/CFS. These findings point to the need for better ways to identify and diagnose youth with this illness.
Authors: Paul A Harris; Robert Taylor; Robert Thielke; Jonathon Payne; Nathaniel Gonzalez; Jose G Conde Journal: J Biomed Inform Date: 2008-09-30 Impact factor: 6.317
Authors: L A Jason; J A Richman; A W Rademaker; K M Jordan; A V Plioplys; R R Taylor; W McCready; C F Huang; S Plioplys Journal: Arch Intern Med Date: 1999-10-11
Authors: Sanne L Nijhof; Kimberley Maijer; Gijs Bleijenberg; Cuno S P M Uiterwaal; Jan L L Kimpen; Elise M van de Putte Journal: Pediatrics Date: 2011-04-18 Impact factor: 7.124
Authors: Michele Reyes; Rosane Nisenbaum; David C Hoaglin; Elizabeth R Unger; Carol Emmons; Bonnie Randall; John A Stewart; Susan Abbey; James F Jones; Nelson Gantz; Sarah Minden; William C Reeves Journal: Arch Intern Med Date: 2003-07-14
Authors: Simon M Collin; Tom Norris; Roberto Nuevo; Kate Tilling; Carol Joinson; Jonathan A C Sterne; Esther Crawley Journal: Pediatrics Date: 2016-01-25 Impact factor: 7.124
Authors: Fredrik Hoel; August Hoel; Ina Kn Pettersen; Ingrid G Rekeland; Kristin Risa; Kine Alme; Kari Sørland; Alexander Fosså; Katarina Lien; Ingrid Herder; Hanne L Thürmer; Merete E Gotaas; Christoph Schäfer; Rolf K Berge; Kristian Sommerfelt; Hans-Peter Marti; Olav Dahl; Olav Mella; Øystein Fluge; Karl J Tronstad Journal: JCI Insight Date: 2021-08-23
Authors: Laura Froehlich; Daniel B R Hattesohl; Leonard A Jason; Carmen Scheibenbogen; Uta Behrends; Manuel Thoma Journal: Medicina (Kaunas) Date: 2021-06-23 Impact factor: 2.430