Leonard A Jason

DePaul University · Department of Psychology

Objective: The purpose of the current study was to develop and evaluate a brief screening instrument for ME/CFS. The current study identified 4 symptom items that identify those positive for the IOM ME/CFS case definition. Study Design: A data set of over 2,000 patients with Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and over 350 c...

Objectives: Studies have demonstrated immune dysfunction in adolescents with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS); however, evidence is varied. The current study used network analysis to examine relationships between cytokines among a sample of pediatric participants with ME/CFS. Methods: 10,119 youth aged 5-17 in the Chicago...

Aim Youth who have not recovered from COVID-19 have been referred to as having Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 Infection (PASC). The goal of this study was to better understand which symptoms persisted since onset of infection and how these symptoms compare to symptoms experienced by those with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (...

Four decades of research in the field of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) have yielded lessons that may be instructive for those devising criteria to better comprehend Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS CoV-2 Infection (PASC) and Long COVID. For instance, substantial effort has been devoted to defining classification systems, o...

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a devastating disease affecting millions of people worldwide. Due to the 2019 pandemic of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), we are facing a significant increase of ME/CFS prevalence. On May 11th to 12th, 2023, the second international ME/CFS conference of the Charité Fatigue Center was he...

This brief report describes the first time a recovery home organization has both developed and evaluated an educational workshop aimed at encouraging the use of medication-assisted treatments (MATs) and NARCAN (naloxone) to prevent/reduce opioid overdoses. The one-hour program involving the use, misuse, and recovery potential of MATs and the opioid...

Purpose Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a chronic condition with a constellation of symptoms presenting as severe and profound fatigue of ≥ 6 months not relieved by rest. ME/CFS affects health-related quality of life (HRQoL), which can be measured using multi-attribute health state utility (HSU) instruments. The aims...

Lipoarabinomannan (LAM) is a Mycobacterial cell wall glycolipid excreted in urine, and a target biomarker of rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for tuberculosis (TB) disease. Urine LAM (uLAM) testing by RDT has been approved for people living with HIV, but there is limited data regarding uLAM levels in HIV-negative adults with TB disease. We conducted a...

This article memorializes David Glenwick (1949-2021). His work helps stimulate the further maturation of community-oriented research by utilizing a wide array of contemporary qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches that are theoretically sound, empirically valid, and creative, thereby addressing in a fresh and innovative manner ques...

Most questionnaires for somatic symptoms focus on occurrence, frequency, or severity, and in doing so, they might not be able to comprehensively assess the burden that symptoms present to patients. For example, a symptom might occur at a high frequency but only a minimal severity, so that it is less likely to be a burden on a patient; whereas a sym...

We read with interest the article "Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome: a review of the current evidence" [1] had read. However, literature search and analysis are methodologically inadequate and the results are at odds with the current evidence.

Research dissemination remains an important conversation among psychological scholars. The large amount of applicable research produced each year fails to reach communities and the general public. From challenges navigating the popular journals, determining the best open source platforms, to developing public networks of research-ready consumers, p...

BACKGROUND: The literature is mixed about the occurrence of alcohol intolerance among patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Surveys that asked respondents with ME/CFS whether they experienced alcohol intolerance within a recent time frame might produce inaccurate results because respondents may indicate that the...

Importance SARS-CoV-2 infection is associated with persistent, relapsing, or new symptoms or other health effects occurring after acute infection, termed postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), also known as long COVID . Characterizing PASC requires analysis of prospectively and uniformly collected data from diverse uninfected and infect...

The current study was based on a longitudinal study of 602 Oxford House residents of which this study focused on 155 who at their first assessment, or baseline, had been in residence for 2 months or less, and we tracked them over time to see how long they remained in the recovery homes. By the time a resident had 6 weeks of residence in the recover...

Public health and welfare systems request documentation on approaches to diagnose, treat, and manage myalgic encephalomyelitis and assess disability-benefit conditions. Our objective is to document ME patients' experiences with services/interventions and assess differences between those meeting different diagnostic criteria, importantly the impact...

Qualitative studies have examined the recovery experiences of individuals prescribed medication-assisted treatment (MAT), including their experiences within treatment facilities. However, the literature lacks qualitative studies exploring the recovery process of individuals prescribed MAT while living in recovery housing, such as Oxford House (OH)....

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a poorly understood chronic illness with many case definitions that disagree on key symptoms, including hypersensitivities to noise and lights. The aim of the current study was to understand the prevalence rates and characteristics of these symptoms amongst people with ME/CFS and to com...

Background: Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a debilitating chronic illness that impacts pediatric populations. Objective: The current study aimed to better understand adult perceptions of their experiences leading up to their diagnosis of ME/CFS. Method: Patients provided data regarding symptoms of ME/CFS they ma...

Background: There is limited information on what acute factors predict more long-term symptoms from COVID-19. Objective: Our objective was to conduct an exploratory factor analysis of self-reported symptoms at two time points of Long COVID-19. Methods: Data from patients with Long COVID-19 were collected at the initial two weeks of contracting...

Although social support is commonly investigated in the context of substance use recovery, researchers have widely neglected its multilevel nature, thus limiting what we know about its measurement across levels of observation. The current study used multilevel confirmatory factor analyses (MCFA) on 229 individuals living in 42 recovery homes to inv...

Fatigue is the most common symptom that affects those with acute and Long COVID. Over the past few years, governments around the world have spent millions of dollars for biomedical research that has quickly picked up a trail of clues that fatigue and Long-COVID are biological disorders with profound psycho-social consequences. The COVID-19 pandemic...

This book serves to expand the research around the illness in order to enable health care researchers and practitioners to address the questions that are imperative to individuals suffering from this condition. It puts forth a maturation of research and interventions that are theoretically sound and creative in the Long COVID area. This book will b...

There have been numerous iterations of naming convention specified for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). As health care turns to “big data” analytics to gain insights, the Google Trends database was mined to ascertain worldwide trends of public interest in several ME- and CFS-related search categories between 2004 a...

This study aimed to explore whether there are differences between Oxford House recovery home residents with psychiatric comorbidity in their ability to form, maintain, and dissolve loaning ties and seek advice, when compared to Oxford House residents without comorbidity, and if differences do exist, are those ties mono- or bi-directional. Findings...

An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) can provide a window into the latent dimensions of a disease, such as Long COVID. Discovering the latent factors of Long COVID enables researchers and clinicians to better conceptualize, study and treat this disease. In this study, participants were recruited from social media sites dedicated to COVID and Long C...

Suicide rates among African American adolescents have increased dramatically. Suicidal ideation is associated with both suicide attempts and completions, thus understanding ideation patterns and predictors in African American adolescents is critical to informing prevention efforts. This study recruited 160 African American ninth grade students. Par...

Background Myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a complex, heterogenous disease. It has been suggested that subgroups of people with ME/CFS exist, displaying a specific cluster of symptoms. Investigating symptom-based clusters may provide a better understanding of ME/CFS. Therefore, this study aimed to identify clusters...

In this first chapter, we review findings from studies that have identified key symptom domains and ways to classify Long COVID. The efforts to develop case definitions for other post-viral illnesses present several lessons for those developing criteria for Long COVID. In this first chapter, we propose a PASC case definition based on some of this r...

The exit from active substance use presents barriers to achieving and maintaining health, especially as individuals lack the economic resources to afford healthcare access. Treatment settings that strengthen resources may support stability in recovery and influence health. Analyzing a sample of recovery home residents over two years (N = 494), the...

Importance Early and accurate diagnosis and treatment of Long COVID, clinically known as post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC), may mitigate progression to chronic diseases such as myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Our objective was to determine the utility of the DePaul Symptom Questionnaire (DSQ) to assess the frequenc...

The effect of the Adapted-Coping with Stress (A-CWS) intervention on social support coping was examined, using a randomized controlled trial design. The participants were 410 ninth-grade students (ages 14 to 16 years and mostly African American) living in low-resourced neighborhoods. Participants were randomly assigned 1:1 to either the A-CWS inter...

The current study explored whether substance abuse recovery houses could be categorized into meaningful classes, which might be associated with house evictions as well as changes in individual-level recovery capital. A total of 602 individuals from 42 recovery homes were followed for up to 6 data collection periods over 2 years. House level latent...

There is a need to better understand social mechanisms that increase or decrease successful departures from recovery homes. A prior study found that involuntary departure as well as one's personal social capital were important to sustaining recovery following the departure from recovery homes. Little is known about what house contextual or interper...

This study sought to ascertain the prevalence of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) among a sample of 465 patients with Long COVID. The participants completed three questionnaires: (1) a new questionnaire measuring both the frequency and severity of 38 common symptoms of COVID and Long COVID, (2) a validated short form ques...

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a devastating illness that affects millions of people worldwide. The current study conducted a literature search for articles on ME/CFS that included information on participant's race/ethnicity and gender. We identified 85 eligible studies, and nearly three-quarters of participants are...

Background: The aim of this research was to examine the psychometrics of a short form version of the multidimensional Involvement in Alcoholics Anonymous scale (IAA-SF) by assessing the factor structure, internal consistency, and predictive validity. While there are several existing measures of involvement in Alcoholics Anonymous, many are either u...

Introduction The diagnosis of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is generally reached based on meeting the criteria of a case definition and eliminating other conditions that could be causing the patient’s symptoms. Investigators in the ME/CFS field are currently confronted with 139 medical exclusionary conditions listed am...

Study samples of patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) have primarily involved White subjects, so the literature on ethnic differences is sparse. The current study identified a sample of 19 Black patients diagnosed with ME/CFS and compared them with White patients with ME/CFS, as well as with healthy controls. Th...

Some individuals infected with SARS CoV-2 have developed Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS CoV-2 infection (PASC) or what has been referred to as Long COVID. Efforts are underway to find effective treatment strategies for those with Long COVID. One possible approach involves alternative medical interventions, which have been widely used to treat and mana...

Suicide is an urgent concern for people with chronic illnesses, particularly for those with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Prior work has examined suicide risk in this illness, but few studies have examined specific risk factors. This study uses binary logistic regression to identify physical, social, and demographic r...

Objectives The Institute of Medicine (IOM 2015. Beyond Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Redefining an Illness. Washington: The National Academies Press) suggested new criteria for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), which requires an endorsement of either neurocognitive impairment or orthostatic intoleran...

The study examined how friendships among women in recovery from substance use disorders are related to individual resources (e.g., social support, self-esteem, and hope) and empowerment (e.g., power and optimism). Findings from a path analysis of 244 women in recovery revealed that friendships among women were positively related to individual resou...

Evidence has suggested that healthy environmental greenness is associated with lower rates of crime. The goal of this study was to explore this phenomenon from a longitudinal perspective while accounting for spatial dependency, and utilizing precision estimation for greenness and refined unit of place. Spatial panel fixed effects estimation was imp...

Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) that detect antigen indicative of SARS-CoV-2 infection can help in making quick health care decisions and regularly monitoring groups at risk of infection. With many RDT products entering the market, it is important to rapidly evaluate their relative performance. Comparison of clinical evaluation study results is chall...

Substance use disorders are increasingly prevalent among veterans in the United States. Veterans in recovery face unique challenges, such as high rates of psychiatric comorbidities, difficulties adjusting to civilian life, and inadequate housing and mental health services. While prior research has explored veterans' experiences in recovery, studies...

This article explores the potential of using systems methods for better conceptualizing the unexpected and complex sets of hurdles and opportunities that practicing psychologists frequently encounter. Examples are provided involving two distinct types of important clinical issues: 1) understanding how individuals maintain recovery from substance us...

Metabolic pathways related to energy production, amino acids, nucleotides, nitrogen, lipids, and neurotransmitters in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) may contribute to the pathophysiology of ME/CFS. 4501 Northwestern University college students were enrolled in a prospective, longitudinal study. We collected data before...

The benefits of social network activity within a recovery home are demonstrative through friendships that are manifested by abstinent individuals through their day-to-day interactions. The social network bonds that these residents build serve as motivating factors that prompt the engagement of pro-social behaviors while also discouraging destructiv...

Replications and the sharing of data with other researchers have become an essential part of the scientific process, and it is an aspect of the social sciences that has grown exponentially over the last few decades and is now required for most federally funded studies. Unfortunately, there are few guidelines or narratives for unexpected complicatio...

A core criterion for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) is a substantial reduction in functioning from pre-illness levels. Despite its ubiquity in diagnostic criteria, there is considerable debate regarding how to measure this domain. The current study assesses five distinct methods for measuring substantial reduction...

In this article, we update our earlier analyses of myalgic encephalomyelitis / chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) economic impact and its National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding versus disease burden, taking into account the anticipated new cases of ME/CFS resulting from COVID-19. Prior to the COVID pandemic, we estimated a United States ME/CFS...

This study aimed to contribute to the development of a research case definition for post-acute sequelae of SARS CoV-2 infection (PASC) using a PASC data set and experiences from case definitions developed for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Our database included patients with PASC who provided self-report symptomology d...

Purpose: Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is an illness characterized by a variety of symptoms including post-exertional malaise, unrefreshing sleep, and cognitive impairment. A variety of case definitions (e.g., the Canadian Consensus Criteria (CCC), the Myalgic Encephalomyelitis International Consensus Criteria (ME-ICC...

Background: About 10% of individuals who contract infectious mononucleosis (IM) have symptoms 6 months later that meet criteria for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Our study for the first time examined whether it is possible to predict who will develop ME/CFS following IM. Methods: We have reported on a prospectively...

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It is estimated that nearly 20 million adults in the United States have a substance use disorder (SUD), and 8.4 million of those adults have a comorbid mental disorder. Roughly half of those adults with a SUD and a psychiatric comorbidity fail to receive adequate treatment for either the SUD or the mental disorder (combined or separately). However,...

Background: Our study explored whether latent classes adequately represented the social capital recovery indicators at the resident level and whether latent class membership predicted subsequent exits from the recovery homes. Method: Our sample included about 600 residents in 42 recovery homes. Over a 2-year period of time, every 4months, data were...

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) includes symptoms such as post-exertional malaise, unrefreshing sleep, and cognitive impairments. Several studies suggest these patients have an increased risk of suicidal ideation and early mortality, although few have published in this area. This study explores risk factors for suicide a...

Objectives Individuals with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) experience debilitating symptoms, including post-exertional malaise, an intensification of symptoms after physical or cognitive exertion. Previous studies found differences in the activity levels and patterns of activity among individuals with ME and CFS,...

An important step in reducing health disparities among racial and ethnic minorities with substance use disorders involves identifying interventions that lead to successful recovery outcomes for this population. The current study evaluated outcomes of a community-based recovery support program for those with substance use disorders. Participants inc...

Objectives Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is often reported to be caused by an infectious agent. However, it is unclear whether one infectious agent might be the cause or whether there might be many different infectious agents. The objective of this study was to identify self-reported infectious illnesses associated wit...

Mental Health Practitioners (MHPs) have a unique opportunity to provide resources and support to those suffering from Long COVID (LC), the post infectious illness that often follows an acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. In working with these individuals, MHPs can learn from the experiences of patients with another post-infectious disease known as myalgic...

Those with substance use disorders living in recovery homes might be at-risk for Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) due to close living arrangements and past histories of substance use (as well as comorbid factors such as homelessness, psychiatric comorbidity, and chronic health conditions). This study compared COVID-19 infection and mortality rates fo...

Background Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) involves severe fatigue, unrefreshing sleep, and cognitive impairment, leading to functional difficulties; prior studies have not evaluated risk factors with behavioral and immune data collected prior to developing ME/CFS.. Up to 5% of university students develop infectious mono...

Purpose Few studies have examined parent-child discrepancies on self-report measures of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) symptomatology and health-related quality of life (HRQOL). The aim of this study was to investigate parent-child reporting discrepancies between a pediatric sample of diagnosed patients with ME/CFS and...

Some recovery homes have facilitating relationships and organizational characteristics, and there are also social capital differences among residents of these recovery homes. It is important to better understand the impact of protective and risk individual and house factors on recovery issues among residents of these community-based settings. Indiv...

Background: Although recovery capital represents various resources for persons recovering from substance use disorders, measures of this construct examine components that might not necessarily reflect the recovery goals of individuals who base their recovery through involvement in 12-step groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anony...

Oxford Houses (OHs) are a large network of selfrun community‐based settings for individuals with substance use disorders. This present study explored a model based on conceptualizing recovery home social systems as dynamic multirelational (multiplex) social networks. The model is developed from data obtained from 42 OH recovery homes in three parts...

Objective: The prevalence of pediatric Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) has been estimated from an ethnically and sociodemographically diverse community-based random sample of 10,119 youth aged 5–17. We assessed whether a salivary biomarker of fatigue could identify youth with ME/CFS. Study design: We examined the ratio...

Myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) represents a significant public health challenge given the presence of many unexplained patient symptoms. Research has shown that many features in ME/CFS may result from a dysfunctional autonomic nervous system (ANS). We explored the role of the cortical autonomic network (CAN) involve...

Recovery homes may facilitate individuals with substance use disorders re-integration back into community settings by providing friendship, resources, and advice. Participants of the current study were over 600 residents of 42 Oxford House recovery homes. Findings indicated that willingness to share resources in the form of loans was associated wit...

Disparities in access and utilization of substance abuse treatment (SAT) among Latinxs, accentuated by this population's rapid growth, create a public health issue. Although substance abuse literature has given more consideration to environmental factors and social support concerning treatment outcomes, current substance abuse models fail to addres...

Although social support is a resource that helps persons in their recovery from substance use disorders, it is not clear whether specific types buffer the effects of stress and optimize outcomes for those with psychiatric comorbidity. This investigation examined two types of social support in relation to lengths of stay to identify mechanisms relat...

Despite increasing awareness of the embedded systemic racism in the United States, many Americans still possess challenges understanding the depth of racism, the history of racism in the United States, how race is a social construct, and the gravity of racism’s impact on everyday life for marginalized people. From the halls of the Executive, Judici...

Recovery homes in the US provide stable housing for over 250,000 individuals with past histories of homelessness, psychiatric comorbidity and criminal justice involvement. We need to know more about how these settings help those who remain in recovery. Our study measured advice seeking and willingness-to-loan relationships, and operationalized them...