Groupa | Male (%) | Female (%) | Total (%, M/F) | Total (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|
(21 studies/24 data) | (46 studies/56 data) | |||
Average prevalence of all studies | 1.11 ± 1.05 | 2.24 ± 2.59 | 1.67 ± 2.06 | 1.40 ± 1.57 |
Pooled prevalence of all studies (Total N. of CFS/N. of participantsb) | 0.74 (451/61,069) | 1.92 (1308/68,124) | 1.37 (1778/129,780) | 0.39 (5370/1387,787) |
Pooled prevalence of the general population (N. of adult CFS/N. of adult participants) | 0.75 (451/60,432) | 1.92 (1304/67,790) | 1.38 (1774/128,809) | 0.38 (4724/1258,337) |
Mean age of CFS patients (12 studies) | 39.3 ± 7.8 | 39.1 ± 7.6 | 40.4 ± 7.7 | 40.4 ± 7.7 |
Prevalence by subgroup (N. of studies that reported sex) | ||||
 Study participants | ||||
  Community (16) | 1.03 ± 1.13 | 2.31 ± 2.88 | 1.67 ± 2.28 | 1.56 ± 1.80 |
  Pooled prevalence (N. of CFS/N. of participantsb) | 0.70 (404/57,751) | 1.94 (1190/61,365) | 1.34 (1594/119,116) | 0.73 (4014/548,461) |
  Primary care (5) | 1.39 ± 0.56 | 1.96 ± 0.74 | 1.68 ± 0.72 | 1.16 ± 1.13 |
  Pooled prevalence (N. of CFS/N. of participantsb) | 1.42 (47/3318) | 1.75 (118/6759) | 1.64 (165/10,077) | 0.21 (1739/839,326) |
 Publication year |  |  |  |  |
  1990–2000 (9) | 0.62 ± 0.58 | 1.26 ± 1.42 | 0.94 ± 1.13 | 0.96 ± 0.91 |
  2001–2010 (10) | 1.35 ± 1.18 | 2.99 ± 3.11 | 2.17 ± 2.49 | 2.08 ± 2.01 |
  2011–2018 (2) | 1.75 ± 0.83 | 1.78 ± 0.71 | 1.76 ± 0.77 | 0.84 ± 0.86 |
 Population group | ||||
  General population (≥ 18 years) (19) | 1.39 ± 1.05 | 2.83 ± 2.61 | 2.11 ± 2.07 | 1.45 ± 1.68 |
  Children/adolescents (< 18 years) (0) | – | – | – | 0.89 ± 0.82 |
  Specific populationc(1) | 0.12 | 0.06 | 0.09 ± 0.03 | 1.62 ± 1.17 |
 Case definition (8 case definitions) | ||||
  CDC-1994 [22] (16) | 1.24 ± 1.04 | 2.61 ± 2.75 | 1.93 ± 2.19 | 1.46 ± 1.34 |
  Holmes [23] (4) | 0.07 ± 0.05 | 0.14 ± 0.15 | 0.11 ± 0.12 | 0.34 ± 0.40 |
  Australian [25] (1) | 2.65 | 5.23 | 3.94 ± 1.29 | 2.52 ± 2.99 |
  Oxford [24] (2) | 1.23 ± 0.64 | 1.76 ± 1.22 | 1.51 ± 1.00 | 1.73 ± 1.35 |
– | – | – | 0.53 ± 0.77 | |
 Country (13 countries) | ||||
  Western (12) | 1.14 ± 0.97 | 2.40 ± 2.86 | 1.77 ± 2.22 | 1.32 ± 1.45 |
  Asian (8) | 1.23 ± 2.92 | 2.06 ± 1.85 | 1.65 ± 1.64 | 1.51 ± 1.74 |
  Otherse(1) | 0.11 | 0.50 | 0.31 ± 0.20 | 2.65 ± 2.37 |
 Diagnostic method | ||||
  Interview (medical test -) (9) | 1.70 ± 1.21 | 4.32 ± 3.24 | 3.01 ± 2.63 | 2.03 ± 2.13 |
  Interview (medical test +) (10) | 0.86 ± 0.70 | 1.23 ± 0.93 | 1.05 ± 0.84 | 1.17 ± 0.77 |
  Physician diagnosis (0) | – | – | – | 0.10 ± 0.05 |
  Medical records (1) | 2.57 | 2.49 | 2.53 ± 0.06 | 1.25 ± 1.00 |