Abstract：
OBJECTIVE: Post COVID-19 Condition (PCC), being persistent COVID-19 symptoms, is reminiscent of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)-a chronic multi-systemic illness characterised by neurocognitive, autonomic, endocrinological and immunological disturbances. This novel cross-sectional investigation aims to: (1) compare symptoms among people with ME/CFS (pwME/CFS) and people with PCC (pwPCC) to inform developing PCC diagnostic criteria; and (2) compare health outcomes between patients and people without acute or chronic illness (controls) to highlight the illness burdens of ME/CFS and PCC.
METHODS: Sociodemographic and health outcome data were collected from n = 61 pwME/CFS, n = 31 pwPCC and n = 54 controls via validated, self-administered questionnaires, including the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey version 2 (SF-36v2) and World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule version 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0). PwME/CFS and pwPCC also provided self-reported severity and frequency of symptoms derived from the Canadian and International Consensus Criteria for ME/CFS and the World Health Organization case definition for PCC.
RESULTS: Both illness cohorts similarly experienced key ME/CFS symptoms. Few differences in symptoms were observed, with memory disturbances, muscle weakness, lymphadenopathy and nausea more prevalent, light-headedness more severe, unrefreshed sleep more frequent, and heart palpitations less frequent among pwME/CFS (all p < 0.05). The ME/CFS and PCC participants\' SF-36v2 or WHODAS 2.0 scores were comparable (all p > 0.05); however, both cohorts returned significantly lower scores in all SF-36v2 and WHODAS 2.0 domains when compared with controls (all p < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: This Australian-first investigation demonstrates the congruent and debilitating nature of ME/CFS and PCC, thereby emphasising the need for multidisciplinary care to maximise patient health outcomes.
METHODS: Sociodemographic and health outcome data were collected from n = 61 pwME/CFS, n = 31 pwPCC and n = 54 controls via validated, self-administered questionnaires, including the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey version 2 (SF-36v2) and World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule version 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0). PwME/CFS and pwPCC also provided self-reported severity and frequency of symptoms derived from the Canadian and International Consensus Criteria for ME/CFS and the World Health Organization case definition for PCC.
RESULTS: Both illness cohorts similarly experienced key ME/CFS symptoms. Few differences in symptoms were observed, with memory disturbances, muscle weakness, lymphadenopathy and nausea more prevalent, light-headedness more severe, unrefreshed sleep more frequent, and heart palpitations less frequent among pwME/CFS (all p < 0.05). The ME/CFS and PCC participants\' SF-36v2 or WHODAS 2.0 scores were comparable (all p > 0.05); however, both cohorts returned significantly lower scores in all SF-36v2 and WHODAS 2.0 domains when compared with controls (all p < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: This Australian-first investigation demonstrates the congruent and debilitating nature of ME/CFS and PCC, thereby emphasising the need for multidisciplinary care to maximise patient health outcomes.
摘要：
目标：后COVID-19病情（PCC），持续的COVID-19症状，让人想起肌痛性脑脊髓炎/慢性疲劳综合征（ME/CFS）-一种以神经认知为特征的慢性多系统疾病，自主性,内分泌和免疫紊乱。这项新颖的横断面调查旨在：（1）比较ME/CFS患者（pwME/CFS）和PCC患者（pwPCC）的症状，以制定PCC诊断标准；（2）比较患者与没有急性或慢性疾病的人（对照）之间的健康结果，以突出ME/CFS和PCC的疾病负担。
方法：从n=61pwME/CFS收集社会人口统计学和健康结果数据，n=31pwPCC，n=54个对照，通过验证，自我管理问卷，包括36项简式健康调查版本2（SF-36v2）和世界卫生组织残疾评估计划版本2.0（WHODAS2.0）。PwME/CFS和pwPCC还提供了自我报告的症状严重程度和频率，这些症状来自于ME/CFS的加拿大和国际共识标准以及世界卫生组织对PCC的病例定义。
结果：两个疾病队列都有类似的主要ME/CFS症状。观察到症状几乎没有差异，随着记忆的干扰，肌肉无力,淋巴结肿大和恶心更普遍，头晕更严重，未刷新的睡眠更频繁，pwME/CFS中心悸的发生率较低（所有p<0.05）。ME/CFS和PCC参与者的SF-36v2或WHODAS2.0评分具有可比性(均p>0.05);然而,与对照组相比,两个队列在所有SF-36v2和WHODAS2.0域的评分均显著降低(均p<0.001).
结论：这项澳大利亚首次调查证明了ME/CFS和PCC的一致性和衰弱性，从而强调需要多学科护理，以最大限度地提高患者的健康结果。
方法：从n=61pwME/CFS收集社会人口统计学和健康结果数据，n=31pwPCC，n=54个对照，通过验证，自我管理问卷，包括36项简式健康调查版本2（SF-36v2）和世界卫生组织残疾评估计划版本2.0（WHODAS2.0）。PwME/CFS和pwPCC还提供了自我报告的症状严重程度和频率，这些症状来自于ME/CFS的加拿大和国际共识标准以及世界卫生组织对PCC的病例定义。
结果：两个疾病队列都有类似的主要ME/CFS症状。观察到症状几乎没有差异，随着记忆的干扰，肌肉无力,淋巴结肿大和恶心更普遍，头晕更严重，未刷新的睡眠更频繁，pwME/CFS中心悸的发生率较低（所有p<0.05）。ME/CFS和PCC参与者的SF-36v2或WHODAS2.0评分具有可比性(均p>0.05);然而,与对照组相比,两个队列在所有SF-36v2和WHODAS2.0域的评分均显著降低(均p<0.001).
结论：这项澳大利亚首次调查证明了ME/CFS和PCC的一致性和衰弱性，从而强调需要多学科护理，以最大限度地提高患者的健康结果。
