Research abstract:

[Neuroinflammation in the Brain of Patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome] by Y Nakatomi, H Kuratsune, Y Watanabe in Brain Nerve. 2018 Jan;70(1):19-25 [Article in Japanese]

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is characterized by chronic, profound, disabling, and unexplained fatigue; cognitive impairment; and chronic widespread pain. By using positron emission tomography, our study demonstrated neuroinflammation in the brain of patients with ME/CFS.

Neuroinflammation was found to be widespread in the brain areas of the patients with ME/CFS and was associated with the severity of their neuropsychological symptoms. The ongoing research would lead to the establishment of objective diagnostic criteria and development of an appropriate therapy.

NB The researchers’ older paper is available in English.

Dr Montoya at Stanford announced at the end of 2017 that they plan to replicate the Japanese findings with even more sensitive tests.