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Dimensions of pure chronic fatigue: psychophysical, cognitive and biological correlates in the chronic fatigue syndrome

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Abstract

Objectives

To investigate associated dimensions of fatigue regarding cognitive impairment, psychomotor performances, muscular effort power and circulating cytokine levels and their relations to symptom intensity in a sample of pure chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients without overlapping objective sleepiness or sleep disorders.

Methods

16 CFS patients were compared to 14 matched controls. We assessed structured symptom-scales, polysomnography, multiple sleep latency tests, attention (Zazzo-Cancellation ZCT, digit-symbol-substitution DSST), psychomotor vigilance and speed (PVT, finger tapping test, FTT), dynamometer handgrip force (tonic and phasic trials) and circulating cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-1b, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α).

Results

In addition to fatigue, CFS patients presented with higher affective symptom intensity and worse perceived sleep quality. Polysomnography showed more slow-wave sleep and microarousals in CFS but similar sleep time, efficiency and light-sleep durations than controls. Patients presented with impaired attention (DSST, ZCT), slower reaction times (PVT) but not with lower hit rates (FTT). Notwithstanding lower grip strength during tonic and phasic trials, CFS also presented with higher fatigability during phasic trials. Cytokine levels were increased for IL-1b, IL-8, IL-10 and TNF-α and fatigue intensity was correlated to grip strength and IL-8.

Conclusions

In contrast to sleepiness, chronic fatigue is a more complex phenomenon that cannot be reduced to one single measured dimension (i.e., sleep propensity). Showing its relations to different measurements, our study reflects this multidimensionality, in a psychosomatic disorder such as CFS. To obtain objective information, routine assessments of fatigue should rule out sleepiness, combine aspects of mental and physical fatigue and focus on fatigability.

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Conflict of interest

On behalf of all co-authors, I hereby declare that all co-authors gave their consent to the present submitted manuscript and that no co-author presented with any conflict of interest for the present study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sleep Laboratory and Unit for Chronobiology U78, Department of Psychiatry, Brugmann University Hospital, Université Libre de Bruxelles (U.L.B), Arthur Van Gehuchten Square, 1020, Brussels, Belgium

    Daniel Neu, Olivier Mairesse, Xavier Montana, Medhi Gilson & Paul Verbanck

  2. Laboratory for Medical Psychology ULB312, Faculty of Medicine, Neuroscience Institute, Université Libre de Bruxelles (U.L.B.), Brussels, Belgium

    Daniel Neu, Olivier Mairesse, Olivier Le Bon & Paul Verbanck

  3. Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology (EXTO), Vrije Universiteit Brussel (V.U.B.), Brussels, Belgium

    Olivier Mairesse

  4. Sleep Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Erasme Hospital, University Clinics of Brussels, U.L.B, Brussels, Belgium

    Xavier Montana & Paul Linkowski

  5. UR2NF-Neuropsychology and Functional Neuroimaging Research Group at CRCN-Center for Research in Cognition and Neurosciences, and UNI-ULB Neurosciences Institute, Université Libre de Bruxelles (U.L.B.), Brussels, Belgium

    Medhi Gilson

  6. Laboratory of Immunology, Department of Clinical Biology, Queen Elisabeth Foundation, Brugmann University Hospital, U.L.B, Brussels, Belgium

    Francis Corazza & Nicolas Lefevre

  7. Department of Psychiatry, Tivoli University Hospital, U.L.B, La Louvière, Belgium

    Olivier Le Bon

  8. Department of Pulmonology, Allergology and Cystic Fibrosis, Queen Fabiola Childrens’ University Hospital (Hôpital Universitaire des Enfants Reine Fabiola, HUDERF), U.L.B, Brussels, Belgium

    Nicolas Lefevre

  9. Vital Signs and Performance-Department LIFE, Royal Military Academy, Brussels, Belgium

    Olivier Mairesse

Authors
  1. Daniel Neu
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  2. Olivier Mairesse
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  3. Xavier Montana
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  4. Medhi Gilson
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  5. Francis Corazza
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  6. Nicolas Lefevre
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  7. Paul Linkowski
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  8. Olivier Le Bon
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  9. Paul Verbanck
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Daniel Neu.

Additional information

Communicated by Dick F. Stegeman.

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Neu, D., Mairesse, O., Montana, X. et al. Dimensions of pure chronic fatigue: psychophysical, cognitive and biological correlates in the chronic fatigue syndrome. Eur J Appl Physiol 114, 1841–1851 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-014-2910-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-014-2910-1

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