Low putamen activity associated with poor reward sensitivity in childhood chronic fatigue syndrome.

Motivational signals influence a wide variety of cognitive processes and components of behavioral performance. Cognitive dysfunction in patients with childhood chronic fatigue syndrome (CCFS) may be closely associated with a low motivation to learn induced by impaired neural reward processing. However, the extent to which reward processing is impaired in CCFS patients is unclear.

Less efficient and costly processes of frontal cortex in childhood chronic fatigue syndrome.

The ability to divide one's attention deteriorates in patients with childhood chronic fatigue syndrome (CCFS). We conducted a study using a dual verbal task to assess allocation of attentional resources to two simultaneous activities (picking out vowels and reading for story comprehension) and functional magnetic resonance imaging. Patients exhibited a much larger area of activation, recruiting additional frontal areas.

Temporal organization of rest defined by actigraphy data in healthy and childhood chronic fatigue syndrome children.

Background: Accumulating evidence has shown a universality in the temporal organization of activity and rest among animals ranging from mammals to insects. Previous reports in both humans and mice showed that rest bout durations followed long-tailed (i.e.

No interaction between serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) polymorphism and adversity on depression among Japanese children and adolescents.

Background: Identification of gene × environment interactions (G × E) for depression is a crucial step in ascertaining the mechanisms underpinning the disorder. Earlier studies have indicated strong genetic influences and numerous environmental risk factors. In relation to childhood and adolescent depression, evidence is accumulating that the quality of the parental environment is associated with serotonin biology in children.

Cognitive dysfunction and mental fatigue in childhood chronic fatigue syndrome--a 6-month follow-up study.

Objectives: Cognitive function was investigated in patients with childhood type chronic fatigue syndrome (CCFS) using the modified advanced trail making test (mATMT).

Methods: mATMT was performed on 19 patients with CCFS and 25 healthy controls of comparable age and sex. The effectiveness of combined treatment with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and pharmacotherapy and its relationship to cognitive function was investigated by evaluation of Chalder's fatigue scale and behavior state before and after treatment for 6 consecutive months.

Effort-reward imbalance for learning is associated with fatigue in school children.

We examined relationships among fatigue, sleep quality, and effort-reward imbalance for learning in school children. We developed an effort-reward for learning scale in school students and examined its reliability and validity. Self-administered surveys, including the effort reward for leaning scale and fatigue scale, were completed by 1,023 elementary school students (grades 4-6) and 1,361 junior high school students (grades 7-9) at the end of 2006.

Temperament and character as predictors of fatigue-induced symptoms among school children in Japan: a 1-year follow-up study.

Objective: This 1-year follow-up study was performed to examine the association of temperament and character dimensions with new onset of fatigue-induced symptoms among school children in Japan, focusing on the transition from childhood to early adolescence.

Method: This study prospectively reviewed data from 1512 school children from four elementary and four junior high schools in Japan. The survey was conducted in 2006 and 2007.

Reliability and validity of the Japanese version of the Chalder Fatigue Scale among youth in Japan.

In the present study, the reliability and construct validity of the Japanese version of the Chalder Fatigue Scale was evaluated as a measure of severity of fatigue among young students in Japan. A healthy group comprised 27 Grade 6 primary school students and 28 Grade 1 junior high school students. The severely fatigued group were hospital outpatients with childhood chronic fatigue syndrome (n = 21).

Metabolic dysfunction and circadian rhythm abnormalities in adolescents with sleep disturbance.

Background: Sleep disturbance attributable to circadian rhythm abnormalities frequently occurs in previously healthy children and adolescents who often complain of gastrointestinal discomfort after meals.

Methods: Glucose metabolism, autonomic function, and human clock gene expression in whole blood cells were investigated in 18 adolescent patients with circadian rhythm sleep disorder.

Results: Glucose tolerance was significantly lower in the patients than in normal controls: the mean sigma blood glucose level was significantly higher (P<0.

Daily expression of clock genes in whole blood cells in healthy subjects and a patient with circadian rhythm sleep disorder.

In recent years, circadian rhythm sleep disorders in humans have been increasing. Clinical features characteristic of this disorder are well known, but the specific causes remain unknown. However, various derangements of circadian expression of the clock gene are a probable cause of this disease.

Case study: differences in human Per2 gene expression, body temperature, cortisol, and melatonin parameters in remission and hypersomnia in a patient with recurrent hypersomnia.

Recurrent hypersomnia is characterized by recurring episodes of hypersomnia of 18 h or more per day lasting from several days to several weeks. We report the case of a 17-year-old male subject with recurrent hypersomnia who displayed change in the 24 h expression of the hPer2 gene in whole red and white blood cells as well as markers [deep body temperature (DBT) and cortisol] of the circadian time structure during an episode of hypersomnia compared to remission. The patient was studied for the temporal characteristics of hPer2 gene, DBT, cortisol, and melatonin expression during a single 24 h span during an episode of hypersomnia and again during a single 24 h span in the following remission.