TY - JOUR T1 - Prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome-like caseness in the working population: results from the Maastricht cohort study JF - Occupational and Environmental Medicine JO - Occup Environ Med SP - 464 LP - 466 DO - 10.1136/oem.2003.008912 VL - 61 IS - 5 AU - M J H Huibers AU - IJ Kant AU - G M H Swaen AU - S V Kasl Y1 - 2004/05/01 UR - http://oem.bmj.com/content/61/5/464.abstract N2 - 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. ER -