- 1.3% of Americans say their physicians have told them that they have chronic fatigue syndrome, according to a new CDC survey.
- The report shows that chronic fatigue affects most segments of the U.S. population.
- Chronic fatigue syndrome is characterized by six months or more of a sense of physical exhaustion.
- Health officials say long COVID cases may contribute to the recent rise in people with chronic fatigue syndrome, but the connection is unclear.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the results of a
According to the survey, over 1.3% of Americans say their doctor told them they have chronic fatigue syndrome. Based on the current U.S. population of 333 million, 1.3% of that figure equals about 4.3 million Americans.
The CDC’s previous estimate for Americans with CFS/ME was
The CDC also reports that about 90% of people with the condition have not been diagnosed.
According to the agency, CFS/ME costs the United States economy approximately $17 to $24 billion annually in medical bills and lost income.
CFS and ME are two different terms for the same condition. “ME” gained popularity among physicians in the United Kingdom, while “CFS” was first used in the U.S. “CFS/ME” is the current term applied to chronic fatigue syndrome in the U.S.
The survey questioned 57,133 American adults in 2021–2022. People in the survey were asked if they had received a definitive diagnosis of CFS/ME or if they recalled having been told they had the condition by their physicians.
CFS/ME is generally described as being characterized by at least six months of profound tiredness.
The rise in CFS/ME cases may be partially attributed to long COVID, a general term for the lingering effects of an acute COVID-19 infection.
A 2023 review found that CFS/ME and long COVID-triggered chronic fatigue are similar, though some…
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