Lewis, Jeffrey D, Wassermann, Eric M, Chao, Wendy et al. · NeuroRehabilitation · 2012 · DOI
This study suggests that post-deployment syndrome—a condition affecting military veterans with chronic pain, fatigue, and memory problems—may develop through a process called central sensitization. Central sensitization means the nervous system becomes overly sensitive and amplifies pain signals. The researchers propose this happens because of changes in how the brain and spinal cord process information, and that stress and genes may increase the risk.
This study is important because it proposes a biological mechanism—central sensitization—that could explain ME/CFS and related conditions, moving away from viewing these illnesses as purely psychological or unexplained. Understanding shared mechanisms across post-deployment syndrome, fibromyalgia, and ME/CFS could accelerate development of targeted treatments and improve recognition of these conditions as legitimate medical disorders.
This review article does not provide new empirical evidence proving central sensitization causes post-deployment syndrome or ME/CFS; it synthesizes existing theory. It does not establish causation, only proposes a mechanistic hypothesis based on clinical similarities. The study does not test specific biomarkers, conduct neuroimaging, or measure sensory thresholds in patients.
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 →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Lewis, Jeffrey D, Wassermann, Eric M, Chao, Wendy, Ramage, Amy E, Robin, Donald A, & Clauw, Daniel J (2012). Central sensitization as a component of post-deployment syndrome.. NeuroRehabilitation. https://doi.org/10.3233/NRE-2012-00805
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-lewis-2012-central-sensitization,
author = {Lewis, Jeffrey D and Wassermann, Eric M and Chao, Wendy and Ramage, Amy E and Robin, Donald A and Clauw, Daniel J},
title = {Central sensitization as a component of post-deployment syndrome.},
journal = {NeuroRehabilitation},
year = {2012},
doi = {10.3233/NRE-2012-00805},
note = {PubMed: 23232159},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lewis-2012-central-sensitization},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-25. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lewis-2012-central-sensitization
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