Primary Navigation for the CDC Website
CDC en Español

Search:  

News & Highlights

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome > Publications > Clinical Picture Publications >

Perception versus polysomnographic assessment of sleep in CFS and non-fatigued controls: results from a population-based study.

Majer M, Jones JF, Unger ER, Solomon Youngblood L, Decker MJ, Maloney E, Gurbaxani B, Heim C, Reeves WC.
BMC Neurology 7:40, 2007 doi:10.1186/1471-2377-7-40.

The complete electronic version of this article is available at http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2377/7/40

Summary

Most people with CFS complain of unrefreshing sleep and this is one of the syndrome defining symptoms. However our detailed in-hospital study of sleep pathology in persons with CFS identified from the general population of Wichita did not find significant differences in primary sleep disorders between persons with CFS and healthy controls nor did we find differences in any measured sleep parameters between the two groups. Other investigators have similarly failed to find important differences in sleep architecture between CFS patients and healthy controls. Persons with CFS also complain of cognitive difficulties and we conducted this analysis of data from the Wichita in-hospital study to determine if the unrefreshing sleep reported by those with CFS reflects sleep-state misperception. In this analysis, participants with CFS reported unrefreshing sleep and problems sleeping through the night and poor quality of sleep significantly more often than controls but they reported sleep latency significantly more accurately than controls. This suggests that persons with CFS may have an increased appreciation of sleep behavior and this may contribute to their perception of sleep problems.

Abstract

Background: Complaints of unrefreshing sleep are a prominent component of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS); yet, polysomnographic studies have not consistently documented sleep abnormalities in CFS patients. We conducted this study to determine whether alterations in objective sleep characteristics are associated with subjective measures of poor sleep quality in persons with CFS.

Methods: We examined the relationship between perceived sleep quality and polysomnographic measures of nighttime and daytime sleep in 35 people with CFS and 40 non-fatigued control subjects, identified from the general population of Wichita, Kansas and defined by empiric criteria. Perceived sleep quality and daytime sleepiness were assessed using clinical sleep questionnaires. Objective sleep characteristics were assessed by nocturnal polysomnography and daytime multiple sleep latency testing.

Results: Participants with CFS reported unrefreshing sleep and problems sleeping during the preceding month significantly more often than did non-fatigued controls. Participants with CFS also rated their quality of sleep during the overnight sleep study as significantly worse than did control subjects. Control subjects reported significantly longer sleep onset latency than latency to fall asleep as measured by PSG and MSLT. There were no significant differences in sleep pathology or architecture between subjects with CFS and control subjects.

Conclusion: People with CFS reported sleep problems significantly more often than control subjects. Yet, when measured these parameters and sleep architecture did not differ between the two subject groups. A unique finding requiring further study is that control, but not CFS subjects, significantly over reported sleep latency suggesting CFS subjects may have an increased appreciation of sleep behaviour that may contribute to their perception of sleep problems.

Page last modified on Feburary 29, 2008

Topic Contents

• Topic Contents

Additional Navigation for the CDC Website

“Safer Healthier People”
 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA
Tel: 404-639-3311  /  Public Inquiries: (404) 639-3534  /  (800) 311-3435