Combination of whole body cryotherapy with static stretching exercises reduces fatigue and improves functioning of the autonomic nervous system in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. — CFSMEATLAS
Combination of whole body cryotherapy with static stretching exercises reduces fatigue and improves functioning of the autonomic nervous system in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
Kujawski, Sławomir, Słomko, Joanna, Godlewska, Beata R et al. · Journal of translational medicine · 2022 · DOI
Quick Summary
This study tested whether combining cold therapy (whole body cryotherapy) with stretching exercises could help people with ME/CFS. Over 2 weeks, 32 people with ME/CFS and 18 healthy people did 10 sessions of stretching and cold exposure. People with ME/CFS experienced less fatigue and some improvements in thinking speed after the treatment, and the cold therapy was well-tolerated with no serious safety concerns.
Why It Matters
ME/CFS currently lacks proven effective treatments, making any potentially tolerable intervention with documented benefit worthy of investigation. This study provides preliminary evidence that cold exposure may modulate autonomic dysfunction—a key physiological feature in ME/CFS—while being safe and acceptable to patients.
Observed Findings
Significant decrease in fatigue levels in the CFS group following the 2-week SS + WBC programme
Improvement in visual information processing speed in both CFS and healthy control groups
Improvement in cognitive set-shifting in both CFS and healthy control groups
Whole body cryotherapy was well-tolerated by CFS patients with no reported serious adverse effects
Changes in cardiovascular and autonomic nervous system function were associated with symptom improvements
Inferred Conclusions
The combination of static stretching and whole body cryotherapy is a tolerable intervention that may reduce fatigue in ME/CFS patients.
Cryotherapy may improve autonomic nervous system dysfunction in ME/CFS, potentially explaining symptomatic benefits.
WBC warrants further investigation as a possible treatment approach given its safety profile and ease of application.
Remaining Questions
Does fatigue improvement persist beyond 2 weeks, or is the effect temporary?
What is the relative contribution of stretching versus cryotherapy—is the combination necessary, or is one component sufficient?
What This Study Does Not Prove
This study does not prove cryotherapy causes fatigue reduction, as there was no control or sham group to account for placebo effects or natural variation. The small sample size, short 2-week duration, and lack of longer-term follow-up prevent conclusions about sustained efficacy or optimal dosing. The observational design limits causal inference.