Ljungström, Maria, Oltra, Elisa, Pardo, Marta · International journal of molecular sciences · 2024 · DOI
This case report describes one patient with ME/CFS who had high levels of stress and an overactive stress-response system in his body. He was treated with a medication called alpha-methyl-p-tyrosine (AMPT), which lowers stress chemicals in the body, and his symptoms improved. The report suggests that some people with ME/CFS may have problems with how their body produces and manages stress chemicals, and this medication might help them.
This case highlights a potentially overlooked biological subtype of ME/CFS characterized by autonomic nervous system dysregulation and catecholamine excess. If AMPT or similar catecholamine-modulating therapies prove effective in future trials, they could offer relief to patients with hyperadrenergic features who do not respond to standard ME/CFS management approaches.
This single case report does not establish that AMPT is an effective treatment for ME/CFS broadly, nor does it prove that catecholamine alterations cause ME/CFS in general populations. The improvement could reflect placebo effect, natural disease fluctuation, concurrent lifestyle changes (pacing), or other unmeasured factors. No causal mechanism between AMPT and symptom relief is demonstrated.
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
Ljungström, Maria, Oltra, Elisa, & Pardo, Marta (2024). Stress-Related Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Case Report with a Positive Response to Alpha-Methyl-P-Tyrosine (AMPT) Treatment.. International journal of molecular sciences. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25147778
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-ljungstrm-2024-stress-related,
author = {Ljungström, Maria and Oltra, Elisa and Pardo, Marta},
title = {Stress-Related Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Case Report with a Positive Response to Alpha-Methyl-P-Tyrosine (AMPT) Treatment.},
journal = {International journal of molecular sciences},
year = {2024},
doi = {10.3390/ijms25147778},
note = {PubMed: 39063020},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/ljungstrm-2024-stress-related},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/ljungstrm-2024-stress-related
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