Leonard Jason

Leonard A. Jason, PhD, is a professor of psychology at DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois, US and Director of the Center for Community Research at DePaul University which includes the DePaul University Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Project. His ME/CFS research is mostly focused on the epidemiology and prevalence of the illness and on the impact of using various case definitions for diagnosis and research.

Dr. Jason developed chronic fatigue syndrome after contracting infectious mononucleosis in 1989, necessitating a leave of absence from his university job for a year and a half. After recovering enough to return to work, he began studying chronic fatigue syndrome: “What I found was that the illness had a lousy name, chronic fatigue syndrome,” he recalled. “It had an even worse case definition. The tests used to assess people’s psychological conditions were inappropriate. The treatments being used were inappropriate. And the prevalence data was not very good. So I said to myself, ‘Boy, I’m gonna have business for the next 20 years.’” He has become one of the most respected and prolific researchers of chronic fatigue syndrome.

In 2008, David Tuller profiled for The New York Times Dr. Jason's experience as both living with and researching myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).

Education

• 1971 - B.A., Psychology, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts
• 1975 - Ph.D., Clinical/Community Psychology, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York

Awards

• 1997, CSN ACTION Champion Award from the Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome Association of America (CAA)
• 2011, Rudy Perpich Senior Lectureship Award, presented to a distinguished CFS/FM scientist, physician or healthcare worker awarded by International Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis
• 2011, Tom Fellows award for outstanding contributions to the Oxford House organization
• 2013, DePaul University College of Science and Health award for Excellence in Research
• 2015, American Psychological Association’s award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Applied Research

Committees and boards

Pediatric case definition

• 2006, A Pediatric Case Definition for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome - (Full Text)

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee

• 2004-2011, Dr. Jason served as a voting member of the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from April 1, 2004 to April 1, 2011. During his tenure he was chairperson of the Research Subcommittee.

International American Association of CFS/ME

• 2004-2009, Dr. Jason served as vice president of the International Association of CFS/ME.

• Dr. Jason serves on the editorial board of the journal, Fatigue: Biomedicine, Health & Behavior, published on behalf of the IACFS/ME.

ME/CFS Common Data Elements (CDE) Project

• 2017-2018, Dr Jason serves on the Baseline/Covariate Working Group of the Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Common Data Element (CDE) Project sponsored by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This working group reviewed data collection instruments widely used by investigators in the ME/CFS field, and either recommended their use unchanged or (more often) proposed some modifications.

Advocacy

Chilli ME Challenge

• 2015, Leonard Jason and his research team at DePaul University participated in an ME/CFS awareness and biomedical research funding project which involved eating a hot chili pepper. - (DePaul Chili Challenge video)

Open letter to The Lancet

Dr Jason signed all three open letters to the editor of The Lancet urging the editor to commission a fully independent review of the PACE trial, which the journal published in 2011.

• 13 November 2015, An open letter to Dr. Richard Horton and The Lancet
• 10 February 2016, An open letter to The Lancet, again - Virology blog
• 19 June 2018, An Open Letter to The Lancet, Two Years On

Research studies related to ME/CFS

Dr. Leonard Jason is a prolific researcher of ME/CFS. Recent studies are listed below.

For complete list of studies: Research studies of Leonard Jason

• 2019, The 'Cognitive Behavioural Model' of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Critique of a Flawed Model - (Full text)
• 2019, Myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome case definitions: effects of requiring a substantial reduction in functioning - (Abstract)
• 2019, Associations between autonomic and orthostatic self-report and physician ratings of orthostatic intolerance in youth - (Abstract)
• 2019, The development of a short form of the DePaul Symptom Questionnaire (Abstract)
• 2019, Assessment of Post-Exertional Malaise (PEM) in Patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS): A patient-driven survey - (Full text)
• 2019, Dismissing chronic illness: A qualitative analysis of negative health care experiences - (Abstract)
• 2019, The DePaul Symptom Questionnaire-2: a validation study - (Abstract)
• 2019, Differentiating post-polio syndrome from myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome - (Abstract)
• 2020, How psychiatric referrals influence stigmatization in patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome: An examination of American and British models - (Abstract)
• 2020, Risk factors for suicide in chronic fatigue syndrome - (Abstract)
• 2020, Post-viral fatigue and COVID-19: lessons from past epidemics - (Full text)
• 2020, Risks for Developing ME/CFS in College Students Following Infectious Mononucleosis: A Prospective Cohort Study - (Full text)

Talks and interviews

• 2014, Leonard Jason answering questions from members of the Institute of Medicine panel on case definition issues
• Oct 2015, Defining essential features of myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome (Sweden)]
• 2016, 12th International IACFS/ME Biennial Clinical and Research Conference, Emerging Science and Clinical Care, Behavioral Assessment and Treatment of ME/CFS and Fibromyalgia(Workshop given with Fred Friedberg, Ph.D.)
• 2016, "qEEG LORETA CFS Case study - Sci Forschen Inc." with Leonard Jason, Marcie Zinn, and Mark Zinn
• 2016, Leonard Jason's comments at Sept. 27th, 2016 #millionsmissing protest in Chicago
• Mar 2017, Leonard Jason's Presentation to European Network on "Current Situation on Prevalence and Diagnostic Crieria for ME and CFS"
• Jan 2017, Leonard Jason's talk to the Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago on "Understanding Unexplained Illness: From Knowledge to Action" Slides for "Understanding Unexplained Illness: From Knowledge to Action"
• 13 Sep 2018, Appropriately and Accurately Assessing Symptoms in Patients with ME, sponsored by Solve ME/CFS Initiative for the 2018 Science & Discovery Webinar Series
• 2 May 2018, Trial By Error: A Q-and-A with Leonard Jason, on Case Definition, interview by David Tuller

Invest in ME International ME Conference

• 2008, Speaker at the 3rd Invest in ME International ME Conference on Case Definitions of ME/CFS – including paediatric case definition - (Video)
• 2010, Speaker at the 5th Invest in ME International ME Conference on Key Note Speech: How Case Definitions Can Stigmatize: Implications for Epidemiology, Etiology, and Pathophysiology DVD available

ME/CFS Alert

• 2011, ME/CFS Alert Episode 08 - Dr. Leonard Jason, Pt. 1
• 2011, ME/CFS Alert Episode 09 - Dr. Leonard Jason, Pt. 2
• 2011, ME/CFS Alert Episode 10 - Dr. Leonard Jason, Pt. 3

Web seminars Science for Patients / Wetenschap voor patienten (The Netherlands, english spoken, dutch subtitles)

• 2014, 50. Introduction - Experience with ME / Introductie - Ervaring met ME Prof. Leonard Jason
• 2014, 51. Criteria and Diagnosis part 1 / Criteria en diagnose deel 1 - Prof. Leonard Jason
• 2014, 52. Criteria and Diagnosis part 2 / Criteria en diagnose deel 2 - Prof. Leonard Jason
• 2014, 53. ME versus Psychiatric Disorders / ME versus psychiatrische aandoeningen - Prof. Leonard Jason
• 2014, 54. Treating and managing ME / Behandelen van en omgaan met ME -Prof. Leonard Jason
• 2014, 55. Symptoms of ME and treatments / Symptomen van ME en behandelingen - Prof. Leonard Jason
• 2014, 56. Population and Social Impact / Populatie en sociale gevolgen - Prof. Leonard Jason
• 2014, 57. Future and Teaching about ME / Toekomst en onderwijs geven over ME - Prof. Leonard Jason

Books

• 1998, Understanding Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: An Empirical Guide to Assessment and Treatment, by Fred Friedberg and Leonard Jason
• 2001, Clinician's Guide To Controversial Illnesses: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, and Multiple Chemical Sensitivities, by Renée R. Taylor, Fred Friedberg, and Leonard A. Jason
• 2003, The Handbook of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome by Leonard Jason, Patricia Fennell and Renée R. Taylor.
• 2008, Fatigue Science for Human Health, edited by Yatanabe, Y., Evengard, B., Natelson, B.H., Jason, L.A., & Kuratsune, H.
• 2013, (Book chapter) The implications of sensitization and kindling for chronic fatigue syndrome - (Abstract)

Articles and presentations

• Jan 2017, Myths about ME and CFS - presentation to the Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago regarding myths regarding ME and CFS
• Sep 18, 2017, "To Serve or Not to Serve: Ethical and Policy Implications"

Online presence

• Website
• Twitter
• YouTube Channel

See also

• Energy Envelope Theory
• DePaul symptom questionnaire
• Ethical issues
• Stigma and discrimination
• National Institutes of Health funding

Learn more

• Wikipedia - Leonard Jason
• Leonard Jason's Home Page at DePaul University

See myalgic encephalomyelitis.

See chronic fatigue syndrome.

Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) - Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome is another term for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, but one which emphasizes the immunological aspects of the disease. Popular in the 1990s, this term has apparently fallen into disuse.

See ME/CFS.

myalgic encephalomyelitis (M.E.) - A disease often marked by neurological symptoms, but fatigue is sometimes a symptom as well. Some diagnostic criteria distinguish it from chronic fatigue syndrome, while other diagnostic criteria consider it to be a synonym for chronic fatigue syndrome. A defining characteristic of ME is post-exertional malaise (PEM), or post-exertional neuroimmune exhaustion (PENE), which is a notable exacerbation of symptoms brought on by small exertions. PEM can last for days or weeks. Symptoms can include cognitive impairments, muscle pain (myalgia), trouble remaining upright (orthostatic intolerance), sleep abnormalities, and gastro-intestinal impairments, among others. An estimated 25% of those suffering from ME are housebound or bedbound. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies ME as a neurological disease.

biomedical research basic medical research on organisms, such as humans or other living things, that helps increase medical knowledge. (Learn more: me-pedia.org)

cognition Thought processes, including attention, reasoning, and memory.

myalgic encephalomyelitis (M.E.) - A disease often marked by neurological symptoms, but fatigue is sometimes a symptom as well. Some diagnostic criteria distinguish it from chronic fatigue syndrome, while other diagnostic criteria consider it to be a synonym for chronic fatigue syndrome. A defining characteristic of ME is post-exertional malaise (PEM), or post-exertional neuroimmune exhaustion (PENE), which is a notable exacerbation of symptoms brought on by small exertions. PEM can last for days or weeks. Symptoms can include cognitive impairments, muscle pain (myalgia), trouble remaining upright (orthostatic intolerance), sleep abnormalities, and gastro-intestinal impairments, among others. An estimated 25% of those suffering from ME are housebound or bedbound. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies ME as a neurological disease.

post-exertional malaise (PEM) - A notable exacerbation of symptoms brought on by small physical or cognitive exertions. PEM may be referred to as a "crash" or "collapse" and can last for days or weeks. Symptoms can include cognitive impairments, muscle pain, trouble remaining upright (orthostatic intolerance), sleep abnormalities, and gastro-intestinal impairments, and others.

See post-exertional malaise.

etiology The cause of origin, especially of a disease.

See National Institutes of Health.

National Institutes of Health (NIH) - A set of biomedical research institutes operated by the U.S. government, under the auspices of the Department of Health and Human Services.