Higher-order brain processes, rather than early processing, underlie sensory problems in ME/CFS: evidence from ERPs.

INTRODUCTION: Patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME)/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) experience significant sensory problems that affect their personal, social and occupational life. However, there is no clear understanding of how the sensory problems manifest in ME/CFS. Neuroimaging studies have provided indirect evidence of the involvement of sensory brain areas in ME/CFS. This novel systematically examined the role of early sensory processing and late information processing brain systems in ME/CFS patients.

METHODS: The participants consisted of 31 ME/CFS patients and 30 healthy matched controls. Measures of subjective experience of sensory problems as well as event-related brain potentials (ERPs) on an auditory paired click task and an auditory oddball task were collected.

RESULTS: ME/CFS patients reported significantly higher sensory problems compared to the control group. On the ERP measures, the ME/CFS group was not significantly different on the P50 suppression index than the control group. However, the ME/CFS group showed a significantly reduced P300 potential compared with the control group.

DISCUSSION: These findings suggest that the higher-order control-based brain mechanism contributes to the sensory problems experienced by ME/CFS patients. These findings could have profound implications for targeted interventions directed towards higher-order brain systems, rather than the sensory systems, to address challenges related to sensory processing problems in ME/CFS.