Prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome-like caseness in the working population: results from the Maastricht cohort study

Aim: To determine the prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)-like caseness in the working population. Methods: Using data from the prospective Maastricht Cohort Study on Fatigue at Work, the prevalence and incidence of CFS-like cases ( employees meeting research criteria for CFS) were determined among 5499 employees who responded to the follow up assessment 3 years and 8 months after baseline. Results: Of the 5499 employees, 199 ( 3.6%) were identified as CFS-like cases. By deleting possible CFS-like cases at baseline, the annual incidence of CFS-like caseness was estimated to be 85 per 10 000. Twenty employees (0.36%) reported having been diagnosed with CFS by a physician. Conclusions: The prevalence of CFS-like cases ( 3.6%) was considerably higher than the prevalence of CFS reported in previous studies (0.006 - 3%). These findings suggest that the CFS-like caseness may be underdetected in the working population and perhaps in other populations as well.