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ScienceDaily: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Linked To Impaired Stress Response

ScienceDaily: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Linked To Impaired Stress Response

Subtle alterations of a hormonal stress response system called the HPA axis may play a role in chronic fatigue syndrome, according to a study in the November/December issue of Psychosomatic Medicine.

A smoothly functioning hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal, or HPA, axis helps the body remain stable under physiological and psychological stress through the actions of three hormones. First, the brain portion called the hypothalamus secretes a hormone that stimulates the pituitary gland to secrete a second hormone. This second hormone causes the adrenal glands to create cortisol.

Problems can occur at any point in this process and result in a variety of diseases.

{including possibly chronic fatigue syndrome}


[...]

Chronic fatigue syndrome is characterized by debilitating fatigue that can include including muscle aches, low-grade fever and sleep disturbances. Its cause is not understood.

[...]

Participants were also given a series of insulin injections known as the insulin tolerance test. "The ITT is considered the gold standard for testing the integrity of the entire HPA axis," Gaab says.

The researchers found significantly lower response levels of one of the HPA hormones, called ACTH, among the chronic fatigue patients compared with the healthy volunteers, during both stress tests as well as the ITT test. In fact, the chronic fatigue patients had significantly lower levels of the hormone before the testing even began.

"These results suggest that on a central level, subtle dysregulations of the HPA axis exist" in chronic fatigue syndrome patients, Gaab says, adding that future studies should include repeated evaluation of the HPA axis over the course of the syndrome.

Gaab and colleagues note that the possible role of cortisol in chronic fatigue syndrome still merits investigation, as low doses of hydrocortisone have shown some positive results in chronic fatigue patients.

Interesting. Sometimes I've seen the HPA axis referred to as the LIMBIC-HPA access. Interesting to me because according to the Dr. Amen test I have limbic system ADD. The limbic system can generate a chronic depressive state. I find it interesting that this is so closely connected to the HPA access, and related to insulin insensitivity. Again, I'm interested to find links between ADD, depression and insulin insensitivity.
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