Sleep characteristics of persons with chronic fatigue syndrome and non-fatigued controls: results from a population-based study

BACKGROUND: The etiology and pathophysiology of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) remain inchoate. Attempts to elucidate the pathophysiology must consider sleep physiology, as unrefreshing sleep is the most commonly reported of the 8 case-defining symptoms of CFS. Although published studies have consistently reported inefficient sleep and documented a variable occurrence of previously undiagnosed primary sleep disorders, they have not identified characteristic disturbances in sleep architecture or a distinctive pattern of polysomnographic abnormalities associated with CFS. METHODS: This study recruited CFS cases and non-fatigued controls from a population based study of CFS in Wichita, Kansas. Participants spent two nights in the research unit of a local hospital and underwent overnight polysomnographic and daytime multiple sleep latency testing in order to characterize sleep architecture. RESULTS: Approximately 18% of persons with CFS and 7% of asymptomatic controls were diagnosed with severe primary sleep disorders and were excluded from further analysis. These rates were not significantly different. Persons with CFS had a significantly higher mean frequency of obstructive apnea per hour (p = .003); however, the difference was not clinically meaningful. Other characteristics of sleep architecture did not differ between persons with CFS and controls. CONCLUSION: Although disordered breathing during sleep may be associated with CFS, this study generally did not provide evidence that altered sleep architecture is a critical factor in CFS. Future studies should further scrutinize the relationship between subjective sleep quality relative to objective polysomnographic measures

Sleep Duration and Quality: Impact on Lifestyle Behaviors and Cardiometabolic Health: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association

Sleep is increasingly recognized as an important lifestyle contributor to health. However, this has not always been the case, and an increasing number of Americans choose to curtail sleep in favor of other social, leisure, or work-related activities. This has resulted in a decline in average sleep duration over time. Sleep duration, mostly short sleep, and sleep disorders have emerged as being related to adverse cardiometabolic risk, including obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and cardiovascular disease. Here, we review the evidence relating sleep duration and sleep disorders to cardiometabolic risk and call for health organizations to include evidence-based sleep recommendations in their guidelines for optimal health

Sleep quality perception in the chronic fatigue syndrome: correlations with sleep efficiency, affective symptoms and intensity of fatigue.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: One of the core symptoms of the chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is unrefreshing sleep and a subjective sensation of poor sleep quality. Whether this perception can be expressed, in a standardized questionnaire as the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), has to our knowledge never been documented in CFS. Furthermore, correlations of subjective fatigue, PSQI, affective symptoms and objective parameters such as sleep efficiency are poorly described in the literature. METHODS: Using a cross-sectional paradigm, we studied subjective measures like PSQI, Fatigue Severity Scale scores and intensity of affective symptoms rated by the Hamilton Depression and Anxiety scales as well as objective sleep quality parameters measured by polysomnography of 28 'pure' (no primary sleep and no psychiatric disorders) CFS patients compared to age- and gender-matched healthy controls. RESULTS: The PSQI showed significantly poorer subjective sleep quality in CFS patients than in healthy controls. In contrast, objective sleep quality parameters, like the Sleep Efficiency Index (SEI) or the amount of slow-wave sleep did not differ significantly. Subjective sleep quality showed a correlation trend with severity of fatigue and was not correlated with the intensity of affective symptoms in CFS. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that a sleep quality misperception exists in CFS or that potential nocturnal neurophysiological disturbances involved in the nonrecovering sensation in CFS are not expressed by sleep variables such as the SEI or sleep stage distributions and proportions.Journal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

The Role of Optimal Healing Environments in the Management of Childhood Obesity

The prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity has increased steadily over the past three decades such that obesity is now a major worldwide pediatric health risk factor. Pediatric obesity is associated with significant health problems, and is an important early risk factor for adult morbidity and mortality. This paper focuses on the role and components of optimal healing environments (OHEs) that may be useful in the management of childhood obesity: healing intention, healing relationships, health promotion and disease prevention, and healing spaces. Diet, physical activity, and behavior modification strategies used in the treatment of childhood obesity are also reviewed