ME/CFS South Australia Inc supports the needs of sufferers of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and related illnesses. We do this by providing services and information to members. Disclaimer ME/CFS South Australia Inc aims to keep members informed of various research projects, diets, medications, therapies, news items, etc. All communication, both verbal and written, is merely to disseminate information and not to make recommendations or directives. Unless otherwise stated, the views expressed on this Web site are not necessarily the official views of the Society or its Committee and are not simply an endorsement of products or services. |
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Fibromyalgia correlated with decreased brain connectivityMonday 10 November 2014
Fibromyalgia Correlated with Decreased Brain Connectivity Although fibromyalgia affects about 5 million people in the United States, doctors still don’t fully understand the condition. Fibromyalgia is far more common among women than men, and it causes severe pain throughout the body, with pain frequently concentrated around tender spots. Because there’s no test for the illness and no way to prove that the pain is real, fibromyalgia patients often feel brushed aside. One recent study, for example, found that 23% of general practitioners and 12% of specialists think fibromyalgia patients are faking their symptoms. But a new study brings doctors one step closer to understanding this painful condition. According to research published in Brain Connectivity, people with fibromyalgia have less brain connectivity than people without the condition. Brain Connectivity in People with Fibromyalgia Researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to compare brain activity in 16 women with fibromyalgia to 22 women without the condition. The day before the test, the women underwent scans designed to calibrate the test to their pain sensitivity. While administering pressure to the women’s thumbs, researchers asked the women to rate their pain. The women were also required to stop taking pain and sedative medications 72 hours before the fMRI. During the scan, researchers again administered pressure to the women’s thumbs. By observing the women’s brain activity, researchers were able to learn more about how the brains of people with fibromyalgia react to pain. Researchers found that the women with fibromyalgia had decreased connectivity—a phenomenon the researchers termed “functional decoupling”—in areas of the brain that process pain, as well as those that affect sensorimotor activity. Women with fibromyalgia also reported higher sensitivity to pain, suggesting that decreased brain connectivity can affect pain perception. Could Brain Stimulation Help? If brain structure changes in people with fibromyalgia, could treating the brain help? That’s what researchers at 16 medical centers hope. Researchers are testing an experimental brain stimulation technique. Using a treatment called reduced impedance noninvasive cortical electrosimulation (RINCE), researchers apply low electrical stimulation to the brain. The treatment is noninvasive and painless. It takes about 11 minutes, and patients receive twice weekly treatments for 12 weeks. Though not directly related to the study showing people with fibromyalgia have decreased brain connectivity, the theory behind brain stimulation is that the electrical current could correct brain abnormalities that cause pain. References:
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