Central sensitization

Central sensitization (CS) refers to an “increased responsiveness of nociceptive neurons in the central nervous system to their normal or subthreshold afferent input.” Clinically this corresponds with a heightened perception of pain stimuli (hyperalgesia) or the experience of pain after normally innocuous stimuli (allodynia). Some researchers speculate central sensitization to be the explanatory mechanism behind various unexplained medical disorders that have chronic pain as a dominant feature. Preliminary evidence suggests central sensitization to be involved in the symptomatology of ME/CFS.