Article

All the major current case definitions for chronic fatigue syndrome
(CFS) specify substantial reductions in previous levels of occupational,
educational, social, or personal activities to meet criteria. Difficulties have
been encountered in operationalizing 'substantial reductions.' For example, the
Medical Outcomes Study Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36) has been used to
determine whether individuals met the CFS disability criterion. However, previous
methods of using the SF-36 have been prone to including people without
substantial reductions in key areas of physical functioning when diagnosing CFS.
This study sought to empirically identify the most appropriate SF-36 subscales
for measuring substantial reductions in patients with CFS. METHOD: The SF-36 was
administered to two samples of patients with CFS: one recruited from tertiary
care and the other a community-based sample; as well as a non-fatigued control
group. Receiver operating characteristics were used to determine the optimal
cutoff scores for identifying patients with CFS. RESULTS: The SF-36
Role-Emotional subscale had the worst sensitivity and specificity, whereas the
Vitality, Role-Physical, and Social Functioning subscales had the best
sensitivity and specificity. CONCLUSION: Based on the evidence from this study,
the potential criteria for defining substantial reductions in functioning and
diagnosing CFS is provided.
CI - (c) 2011 Informa UK, Ltd.

Langue : ANGLAIS