Aims Topresent international data on the prevalence of unexplained fatigue and fatigue as a presentingcomplaint in primarycare. Method Secondary analysis of the World Health Organization studyof psychologicalproblemsin generalhealth

Declaration of interest None. Various studies have shown that unexplained fatigue syndromes are common conditions in both the community (Walker et al, 1993; Steele et al, 1998; Skapinakis et al, 2000) and primary care (Bates et al, 1993; McDonald et al, 1993; Hickie et al, 1996; Wessely et al, 1997). Fatigue is also common as a presenting complaint to primary care physicians (Cathebras et al, 1992; Fuhrer & Wessely, 1995). The majority of the studies, however, were carried out in well-developed countries. Data from less-developed countries are relatively sparse. The present paper aims to report the cross-cultural differences in the prevalence of fatigue syndromes, using data from the World Health Organization (WHO) international study of psychological problems in general health care carried out in 14 countries (Sartorius et al, 1993). We also examine the hypothesis that individuals from well-developed countries will be more likely to report fatigue compared with subjects from less-developed countries.