RT Journal Article
T1 Broad cognitive complaints but subtle objective working memory impairment in fibromyalgia patients
A1 Pidal Miranda, Marina
A1 González Villar, Alberto Jacobo
A1 Carrillo de la Peña, María Teresa
A1 Andrade Fernández, Elena
A1 Rodríguez Salgado, Dolores
K1 Chronic pain
K1 Dyscognition
K1 Working memory
K1 Cognitive complaints
K1 Fibromyalgia
K1 Fibrofog
K1 Cognition
K1 Neuropsychological performance
K1 Cognitive dysfunction
AB BackgroundCognitive dysfunction in fibromyalgia (FM) encompasses objective cognitive difficulties, as measured in neuropsychological tests, and self-reported cognitive complaints. Although it has been suggested that FM patients display problems in working memory, the data are inconsistent, and the overall working memory status of the patients is unclear. It is also not clear whether the working memory problems are related to cognitive complaints or how the dyscognition is affected by the characteristic clinical symptoms of FM.MethodsTo clarify these aspects, we explored the neuropsychological performance for different components of working memory and the subjective self-perception of cognitive status in a sample of 38 women with FM. They were compared with a matched group of 32 healthy women.ResultsOur findings suggested that the FM patients do not differ from healthy controls in their overall working memory functioning. Only a poor performance was found in a single task of visuospatial working memory, mediated by the presence of depressive symptoms, fatigue and pain. The FM patients also displayed a higher level of perception of cognitive difficulties than healthy controls, and this difference was mediated by depression and fatigue. Furthermore, cognitive complaints in FM patients were only associated with a lower verbal WM capacity.DiscussionFM patients have a subtle specific impairment in their working memory functioning, as well as elevated concern about their cognitive status. These findings suggest a disconnection between neuropsychological performance and subjective complaints. In FM patients, clinical variables such as pain, fatigue, and depression play an important role in dyscognition, as assessed by both objective and subjective measures, and should be taken into account in future research
PB PEERJ INC
YR 2018
FD 2018
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10347/22380
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10347/22380
LA eng
NO Pidal-Miranda M, González-Villar AJ, Carrillo-de-la-Peña MT, Andrade E, Rodríguez-Salgado D. 2018. Broad cognitive complaints but subtle objective working memory impairment in fibromyalgia patients. PeerJ 6:e5907
NO This work was supported by funding from the Galician Government (Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria; axudas para a consolidación e Estruturación de unidades de investigación competitivas do Sistema universitario de Galicia [grant number GPC2014/047] and funding from the Spanish Government (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad) [Grant Number PSI2013-45818-R]. Alberto González-Villar was supported by a grant from the Fundación Ramón Domínguez
DS Minerva
RD 22 abr 2026