An article published in the European Medical Journal (EMJ) – which aims to “elevate the quality of healthcare globally” – has summarised an “in press paper”, an unedited version of a manuscript released to give early access to findings, on ME Research UK-funded research identifying brain connectivity changes in people with ME/CFS, and in those with long COVID.
Whilst a finalised version of the research article from Associate Professor Leighton Barnden’s team is awaited in the Journal of Translational Medicine, the piece published in EMJ highlights that the “researchers found distinct disruptions in how key brain regions coordinate during cognitive fatigue.”
Also reported by Griffith University last week, the new findings reveal that for people with ME/CFS, and for those with Long COVID, ultra-high field MRI scans “… show changes in the brain regions which may contribute to cognitive difficulties such as memory problems, difficulty concentrating, and slower thinking.”
The EMJ article concludes by highlighting “implications for clinical understanding and care”, which are that the findings support “patient reports that mental exertion has neurological consequences and reinforces the importance of pacing and rest”. This was also noted in the University article, which narrates that the research supports what many people with ME/CFS and Long COVID experience i.e. that cognitive effort is not just tiring but could have real neurological impacts, and adequate rest is not optional but essential.
Additionally, the author of the piece in EMJ states that “future research may use these connectivity patterns to guide diagnosis, stratify patients, or evaluate targeted interventions for chronic fatigue syndrome and long COVID.”
ME Research UK will provide a full write up of the most recent article from Barnden’s team when it is published in full. In the meantime, you can read about their latest ME Research UK-funded project “Tracking changes in the structure and function of the brain over time in ME/CFS”.
