FIBROMYALGIA AND BRAIN FUNCTION

Cognitive dysfunction in fibromyalgia and
chronic fatigue syndrome: new trends and future directions.

Fibromyalgia (FM) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients often have memory and cognitive complaints. Objective cognitive testing demonstrates long-term and working memory impairments. In addition, CFS patients have slow information-processing, and FM patients have impaired control of attention, perhaps due to chronic pain. Neuroimaging studies demonstrate cerebral abnormalities and a pattern of increased neural recruitment during cognitive tasks. Future work should focus on the specific neurocognitive systems involved in cognitive dysfunction in each syndrome.

Glass JM. Curr Rheumatol Rep. 2006 Dec;8(6):425-9.

Reduced Presynaptic Dopamine Activity in Fibromyalgia
Syndrome Demonstrated With Positron Emission
Tomography: A Pilot Study.

Although the pathophysiology underlying the pain of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) remains unknown, a variety of clinical and investigational findings suggests a dysregulation of dopaminergic neurotransmission. We therefore investigated presynaptic dopaminergic function in 6 female FMS patients in comparison to 8 age- and gender-matched controls as assessed by positron emission tomography with 6-[(18)F]fluoro-L-DOPA as a tracer. Semiquantitative analysis revealed reductions in 6-[(18)F]fluoro-L-DOPA uptake in several brain regions, indicating a disruption of presynaptic dopamine activity wherein dopamine plays a putative role in natural analgesia. Although the small sample size makes these findings preliminary, it appears that FMS might be characterized by a disruption of dopaminergic neurotransmission. PERSPECTIVE: An association between FMS and reduced dopamine metabolism within the pain neuromatrix provides important insights into the pathophysiology of this mysterious disorder.

Wood PB, Patterson Ii JC, Sunderland JJ, Tainter KH, Glabus MF, Lilien DL. J Pain. 2006 Oct 3