Fatigue severity and avoidance among individuals with chronic disease: A meta-analysis

•Fatigue is a common, disabling symptom reported by patients with chronic diseases.•Avoidance (evading unwanted experiences) is associated with fatigue across samples.•Meta-analyses found a positive association between fatigue severity and avoidance.•Association strength was not impacted by age, sex, illness duration or disease type.•Findings have implications for behavioral interventions in this population.