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New evidence shows the coronavirus pandemic left lasting impacts on people’s health worldwide.
As SARS-CoV-2 swept the globe, cases of myalgic encephalomyelitis—better known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS)—have surged.
A study from the Bateman Horne Center found that people who had COVID-19 were 7.5 times more likely to show chronic fatigue symptoms six months later than people who were not infected.
“Our findings indicate that the incidence and risk of developing ME/CFS after SARS-CoV-2 infection are significantly increased,” wrote the research team led by Suzanne Vernon.
Viruses and Fatigue
While no one knows for certain what causes ME/CFS, scientists have long observed a connection between chronic fatigue and viral infections.
The authors of the new study noted that their results “are supported by other research that has identified infectious agents, such as Epstein-Barr virus and Ross River virus, as contributors to chronic fatigue syndrome.”
Both long COVID and ME/CFS share many symptoms, as reported by Science Alert. So some researchers suspect the two conditions may be related or have overlapping causes.
Experts estimate that between 13 and 58 percent of people with long COVID meet the diagnostic criteria for ME/CFS.
What Did Scientists Discover?
The study, funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, included 11,785 people who had recovered from COVID-19 and 1,439 volunteers who had never been infected. From October 2021 to September 2024, participants completed health questionnaires every three months.
Ultimately, 4.5 percent of participants who had COVID-19 met the criteria for ME/CFS. Nearly 40 percent of those infected reported at least one symptom of ME/CFS six months after their COVID-19 diagnosis.
In contrast, among uninfected individuals, only 0.6 percent had the syndrome, and 16 percent reported one symptom.
The most common symptom was post-exertional malaise. The second most common symptom was orthostatic intolerance, which involves a sudden drop in blood pressure.
Among the COVID-19 group, chronic fatigue syndrome appeared most often in white women ages 46 to 65 who lived in rural areas and were less likely to be vaccinated.
Understanding why some people are more susceptible to long COVID and ME/CFS could help researchers develop new ways to prevent and treat both conditions.
The authors said that because neither condition has a known cause or reliable treatments and both are increasing, more research is warranted.
The findings were published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
