Cognitive task performance and subjective cognitive symptoms in individuals with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia, 2022, Joustra et al

[Andy]

Full title: Cognitive task performance and subjective cognitive symptoms in individuals with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia: A cross-sectional analysis of the Lifelines cohort study

Abstract

Objective
This study examined cognitive task performance and self-reported cognitive functioning in individuals with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and fibromyalgia (FM) in a population-based sample and investigated the role of mood and anxiety disorders as well as severity of the physical symptoms.

Methods
This study was performed in 79,966 participants (Mean age: 52.9, SD = ±12.6 years, 59.2% women) from the Lifelines general-population. Symptoms consistent with the diagnostic criteria for CFS and FM were assessed using questionnaires. Two comparison groups were used: participants with self-reported medical disorders with well-defined pathophysiology (i.e., multiple sclerosis and rheumatic arthritis) and controls without these diseases. Objective task-performance was based on the computerized CogState cognitive battery and subjective cognitive symptoms using the concentration subscale of the Checklist Individual Strength.

Results
Cognitive task performance was poorer in individuals with CFS vs. controls without disease and controls with a medical disorder, although the severity of cognitive dysfunction was mild. Participants meeting criteria for CFS (n = 2,461) or FM (n = 4,295) reported more subjective cognitive symptoms compared to controls without a medical disorder (d = 1.53, 95%CI = 1.49-1.57 for CFS; d = 1.25, 95%CI = 1.22-1.29 for FM) and participants with a medical disease (d = 0.62, 95%CI = 0.46-0.79 for CFS; d = 0.75, 95%CI = 0.70-0.80 for FM). These differences remained essentially the same when excluding participants with comorbid mood or anxiety disorders or adjusting for physical symptom severity.

Conclusions
Subjective cognitive symptoms and to a lesser extent suboptimal cognitive task performance are more prevalent in individuals with CFS or FM compared to controls without these conditions.

Paywall, https://journals.lww.com/psychosoma...itive_task_performance_and_subjective.47.aspx

 

[rvallee]

well-defined pathophysiology (i.e., multiple sclerosis

The cause of MS was literally discovered this year and there's a lot more work ahead to figure out how it actually causes the disease. This is not well-defined by any reasonable definition. Of course what they mean is diseases that aren't discriminated, but it sounds bad to admit.

 

[ME/CFS Skeptic]

Don't have access to the paper but I wonder if diagnosis of CFS was self-reported.

 

[Amw66]

It would have been more interesting if a comparator for Cognitive disfunction after exertion had been assessed.

 

[Andy]

Don't have access to the paper but I wonder if diagnosis of CFS was self-reported.

I think it was, going by previous studies based on the Lifelines data.

 

[Grigor]

Don't have access to the paper but I wonder if diagnosis of CFS was self-reported.

I think this is about the same data? Here it's mentioned that it's based on criteria instead of self-reported diagnoses.

https://www.google.nl/url?sa=t&sour...AQFnoECAYQAQ&usg=AOvVaw1EYWhFDmK-fk6fyyFU2sJm

 

[Mithriel]

Severity of cognitive dysfunction may well be mild in ME in a short lived task. I can manage most cognitive things quite well once or twice but then get worse until I am not only cognitively challenged but unable to stand, dizzy and with a racing heart.

Tests on people with ME always need to be done with us exerted. That has been known for fifty years.