One of the main symptoms of CFS is cognitive dysfunction. Also known as “brain fog”, this symptom is believed to be caused by lowered cerebral blood flow.(1)
One study showed that up to 80% of chronic fatigue patients had lower than normal cerebral blood flow.
A 2005 study showed that reduced blood flow was not confined to specific regions, but was present in broad areas throughout the brain. These blood flow patterns were not consistent with depression which would show reduced prefrontal cortex activity, but seemed to have generalized lower blood flow throughout large areas.
In 2001 I had SPECT and PET scans performed. The doctor that analyzed them did not have a clear diagnosis for me. I felt like he was searching for any diagnosis other than CFS. Hopefully things may have changed in 7 years and doctors today may be more informed and open about chronic fatigue syndrome as a diagnosis.
There are different theories i have read about, that might explain this reduced blood flow found in CFS. They range from reduced blood volume, to Martin Pall’s nitric oxide/peroxynitrite theory, and hypercoagulation.
Personally, my symptoms are mostly cognitive. My worst symptom is by far brain fog, but also have major problems with fatigue and insomnia.
Here are the images from my 2001 PET Scans:
The top row of images are the healthy control images, the bottom row of images are the scans of my brain.
Click Here for full size image 1
Click Here for full size image 2
Wow! What a tremendous amount of work you’ve put into your blog. I was looking for some CFS blogs to add to my blogroll and yours came up first on google. I’m so glad it did.
I am glad I found your blog. I will return soon.
Thank you for writing this, it’s good to encounter another person who has brain fog as their main problem. I get all the usual symptoms, like we all do but I can work round the physical stuff, I can’t work round suddenly going stupid & confused- it affects my work! I can force myself to be coherent (this typing is taking some effort!) in my own time -but normal life doesn’t give you infinite time to reply/learn/choose/analyse. It’s the only symptom I’ve never had any respite from. If anyone has anything that’s helped with this problem I’d really like to hear about it.
Fiona, dark chocolate has really worked pretty well for me, as far as brain fog. I followed the study that used 45mg per day (as much as I’d like to try more, I’m pretty sensitive to caffeine and find the 45mg is really enough). And this seems it might fit in line with the discussion about nitric oxide/blood flow.
I finally got sick of feeling this way and decided to find out for myself. I’ve had doctors check my thyroid, and many types of blood tests for a vitamin deficiency. I am 23 years old and I have felt tired my whole life. I work harder than everyone else because i don’t want anyone to mistake it for being lazy. I always can’t wait for a weekend to rest and I feel even worse when it doesn’t help and then i haven’t accomplished anything. I have been slowly developing the brain fog the last few years, and that’s what has me upset. I feel like i have a mild case of alzheimers. I have many customers at work who all act like my friends around town and i don’t even know there names. I never suffer the embarrassment of asking them after I’ve known them a year because I know i still won’t remember a second time. This is common with a lot of people, but mine is different. I have to learn how to pretend I know what’s going on on a daily basis. I have “general anxiety disorder” which I have successfully been medicated for. I always blamed my really bad anxiety for being tired and messing with my brain. But it sounds like the anxiety is part of CFS. I get light headed and dizzy and vertigo. For my anxiety I am on Clonozapam. It has been a miracle for my anxiety, doctors don’t like prescribing it unless nothing else works. I recommend anyone with any anxiety to try it. I have more energy when my anxiety isn’t taking everything i have. Vitamins help my energy. The only other thing i can think of for advise…when I was 17 I started working out everyday to lose weight (I lost 55 lbs.) and the endorfins from excercise gave me energy. When I was working out and lost all that weight was the only time in my life i felt “normal”. Then I had 2 kids and lost the routine, now its back. Muster up enough energy to try excercise, I believe that is the best solution,plus you will sleep better. I will continue looking for clinical solutions myself…except doctors act like I am a hypocondriac…