Prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome/ME (CDC-1994 case definition)

0.89%

percent of population, worldwide (meta-analysis)

“This study comprehensively estimated the prevalence of CFS/ME; 0.89% according to the most commonly used case definition CDC-1994, with women approximately 1.5 to 2 folds higher than men in all categories.”

Lim et al., Systematic review and meta-analysis of the prevalence of CFS/ME, J Transl Med 2020, 2020

Kind of source

Peer-reviewed study

Read on

2026-11-06

Daily check

Quote found at the source on 2026-11-06

What to know

Recorded as a percent as given. Rates vary widely by case definition (the meta-analysis pooled 0.68%).

About

ME/CFS