Brkic, Snezana, Tomic, Slavica, Maric, Daniela et al. · Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research · 2010
This study found that women with ME/CFS have higher levels of a harmful substance called malondialdehyde (MDA), which is produced when the body experiences oxidative stress—like cellular damage from free radicals. The researchers also found that women with ME/CFS had lower levels of "good" cholesterol (HDL) and higher triglycerides, patterns usually seen in people at risk for heart disease. These findings suggest that oxidative stress may be contributing to ME/CFS in ways that could affect heart health.
This study provides biochemical evidence that oxidative stress—specifically lipid peroxidation—may be an objective biological feature of ME/CFS. Finding that CFS patients show lipid abnormalities typically associated with cardiovascular risk raises important clinical concerns and suggests oxidative stress may be a therapeutic target. These findings support the hypothesis that ME/CFS involves pathophysiological mechanisms beyond fatigue.
This study does not prove that lipid peroxidation causes ME/CFS, only that it is associated with the disease. The cross-sectional design cannot establish whether elevated MDA precedes, follows, or results from ME/CFS. The study does not determine whether the observed lipid changes increase cardiovascular risk in ME/CFS patients, nor does it provide information on whether treating oxidative stress would improve symptoms.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
Spotted an error in this entry? Report it →