Fibromyalgia: the role of sleep in affect and in negative event reactivity and recovery

OBJECTIVE: Fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome is a chronic pain condition characterized by diffuse muscle pain, increased negative mood, and sleep disturbance. Until recently, sleep disturbance in persons with FM has been modeled as the result of the disease process or its associated pain. The current study examined sleep disturbance (i.e., sleep duration and sleep quality) as a predictor of daily affect, stress reactivity, and stress recovery. DESIGN AND MEASURES: A hybrid of daily diary and ecological momentary assessment methodology was used to evaluate the psychosocial functioning of 89 women with FM. Participants recorded numeric ratings of pain, fatigue, and positive and negative affect 3 times throughout the day for 30 consecutive days. At the end of each day, participants completed daily diary records of positive and negative life events. In addition, participants reported on their sleep duration and sleep quality each morning. RESULTS: After accounting for the effects of positive events, negative events, and pain on daily affect scores, it was found that sleep duration and quality were prospectively related to affect and fatigue. Furthermore, the effects of inadequate sleep on negative affect were cumulative. In addition, an inadequate amount of sleep prevented affective recovery from days with a high number of negative events. CONCLUSIONS: These results lend support to the hypothesis that sleep is a component of allostatic load and has an upstream role in daily functioning.     

Developmental changes in the recognition and comprehension of facial expression: implications for frontal lobe function.

Children aged 6-15 years old and adults (over 18) were given three tests designed to test perception and comprehension of facial expression. In the first test subjects were given two composite symmetrical faces made from the left or right half of a normal face, the subjects' task being to indicate which composite more closely resembled the original face. In the second test the subjects matched a series of photographs from Life magazine with key photographs of one of six distinct emotions (sad, fear, happy, anger, disgust, surprise). In the third test the subjects chose a key photograph that was appropriate for the face of a faceless character in a cartoon. On the composite faces test the subjects in all groups exhibited a preference for the left visual field composite, implying that all age groups were processing the faces in a similar manner. The results of the other two tests showed that there was an improvement in the perception of facial expression between the ages of 6 and 8 years, little change until about 13 years, and then a second improvement to adult performance at about 14 years. The performance of the 8- to 13-year-old children was similar to that of adult patients with frontal lobe injuries, which could be taken as evidence that the regions of the frontal lobe involved in the performance of these tasks may not be mature until about 14 years of age.