Papers: 6 Jul 2024 - 12 Jul 2024

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) plays a crucial role in the perception of pain. It is consistently activated by noxious stimuli and its hyperactivity in chronic pain indicates plasticity in […]

PIEZO2 is a trimeric mechanically-gated ion channel expressed by most sensory neurones in the dorsal root ganglia. Mechanosensitive PIEZO2 channels are also genetically required for normal touch sensation in both […]

Clinically, chronic pain and depression often coexist in multiple diseases and reciprocally reinforce each other, which greatly escalates the difficulty of treatment. The neural circuit mechanism underlying the chronic pain/depression […]

Endometriosis, a common cause for chronic pelvic pain, significantly affects quality of life, fertility, and overall productivity of those affected. Therapeutic options remain limited, and collating evidence on treatment efficacy […]

Preclinical and clinical work has demonstrated altered plasticity and activity in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) under chronic pain states, highlighting critical therapeutic avenues for the management of chronic pain conditions. […]

International guidelines have recommended cognitive behavioural therapy, including acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), as it offers validated benefits for managing fibromyalgia; however, it is inaccessible to most patients. We aimed […]

It is still unclear how and why some patients develop painful and others painless polyneuropathy. The aim of this study was to identify multiple factors associated with painful polyneuropathies (NeuP). […]

Recurrent hamstring injuries are highly prevalent amongst sporting populations. It has been hypothesised that pain from an initial hamstring injury may induce reorganisation of somatosensory representations that could contribute to […]

Pruritus often escapes physicians’ attention in patients with peripheral neuropathy (PNP). Here we aimed to characterize neuropathic pruritus in a cohort of 191 patients with PNP (large, mixed, or small […]

Mas-related G-protein coupled receptor X2 (MRGPRX2) is a promiscuous receptor on mast cells that mediates IgE-independent degranulation and has been implicated in multiple mast cell-mediated disorders, including chronic urticaria, atopic […]

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a debilitating disease with a broad overlap of symptomatology with Post-COVID Syndrome (PCS). Despite the severity of symptoms and various neurological, cardiovascular, microvascular, and […]

There is an urgent and unmet clinical need to develop non-pharmacological interventions for chronic pain management due to the critical side effects of opioids. Low-intensity transcranial focused ultrasound is an […]

Sjögren syndrome or Sjögren disease is a chronic form of autoimmune epithelitis characterized by lymphocytic infiltration of the exocrine glands, particularly the salivary and lacrimal glands, leading to progressive glandular […]

Using the Australiasian electronic Persistent Pain Outcomes Collaboration, a binational pain registry collecting standardized clinical data from paediatric ePPOC (PaedsePPOC) and adult pain services (AdultePPOC), we explored and characterized nationally […]

Quantitative sensory testing (QST) is a set of methods for quantifying somatosensory functioning. Limitations of laboratory-based QST (LQST) include high cost, complexity in training, lack of portability, and time requirements […]

Chronic pain is a serious and prevalent condition that can affect many facets of life. However, uncertainty remains regarding the strength of the association between chronic pain and death and […]

Although survivors of childhood cancer are at an increased risk, little is known about the prevalence of chronic pain, associated interference, and daily pain experiences. Survivors (N = 233; mean […]

Chronic pain is a prevalent and complex health issue associated with physical, emotional, and social consequences. Management of pain is multifactorial and challenging; however, physical activity (PA) has consistently been […]

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a common chronic pain condition for which acupuncture treatment is increasingly utilized. However, there is no universally accepted measure to predict whether a specific patient will benefit […]

The placebo and nocebo effects highlight the importance of expectations in modulating pain perception, but in everyday life we don’t need an external source of information to form expectations about […]

Neuropathic pain is one of the most challenging types of pain to diagnose and treat, a problem exacerbated by the lack of a quantitative biomarker. Recently, several clinical and preclinical […]

Research has indicated that the default mode network (DMN) is perturbated in patients with chronic pain when compared with healthy controls, and this perturbation is correlated with the duration of […]

Past cross-sectional chronic pain studies have revealed aberrant resting-state brain activity in regions involved in pain processing and affect regulation. However, there is a paucity of longitudinal research examining links […]

Endometriosis is a common disorder associated with pain, gastrointestinal and urinary symptoms, infertility, and fatigue. It is defined by the presence of endometrial-like lesions found predominantly in the pelvis. Mechanisms […]

Recent advances in cell and biofabrication technologies have contributed to the development of complex human organs. In particular, several skin substitutes are being generated using tissue engineering and regenerative medicine […]

The last decade has seen a boom in pain medicine, basic science and interventional pain management. Concomitantly, there is a need to educate trainees, young attendings, and seasoned attendings on […]

Monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL) is the key enzyme for the hydrolysis of endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG). The central role of MAGL in the metabolism of 2-AG makes it an attractive therapeutic target […]

High-risk practices, including dispensing an opioid prescription before surgery when not recommended, remain poorly characterized among US youths and may contribute to new persistent opioid use.

Persistent opioid use (POU) is a common marker of harm related to opioid use after trauma. This study determined the incidence and risk factors for POU after hospitalisation due to […]

The incidence of chronic pain has been increasing over the last decades and may be associated with the stress of deployment in active-duty servicewomen (ADSW) as well as women civilian […]

The elderly population typically suffer from a variety of diseases that mostly reflect the degenerative changes linked with the aging process. These diseases may be exacerbated by acute pain or […]

Diabetic neuropathy is a common complication of diabetes mellitus (DM) and can affect up to 50% of DM patients during their lifetime. Patients typically present with numbness, tingling, pain, and […]

Persistent sodium current (I) is an important activity-dependent regulator of neuronal excitability. It is involved in a variety of physiological and pathological processes, including pacemaking, prolongation of sensory potentials, neuronal […]

Migraine and sleep disorders share a bidirectional relationship, but little is known about the specific association between migraine and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behaviour disorder (RBD). The aim was […]

Depression and chronic pain are significant contributors to the global burden of disease. Previous research has revealed complex relationships between these two conditions, which may be influenced by sleep quality. […]

The aim of this study was to present key technologic and regulatory milestones in spinal cord stimulation (SCS) for managing chronic pain on a narrative timeline with visual representation, relying […]

The pathogenesis of fibromyalgia (FM), characterised by chronic widespread pain and fatigue, remains notoriously elusive, hampering attempts to develop disease modifying treatments. Mitochondria are the headquarters of cellular energy metabolism, […]

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic condition characterised by widespread pain, and cognitive difficulties represent one of the most common symptoms of FM. However, subjective cognitive complaints (SCC) may not necessarily […]

Fibromyalgia (FM) is characterised by chronic widespread pain, often associated with fatigue, sleep disturbance, cognitive and mood impairment. Pain is a complex and multidimensional experience that significantly impacts personal, social, […]

Atogepant, an orally administered, small-molecule, calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) receptor antagonist, is being investigated for the treatment of migraine.

Pain is one of many complaints expressed by patients with diabetic polyneuropathy. However, no objective measure for pain severity has been available. Neurofilament light chains have been widely used for […]

Headache disorders are highly prevalent worldwide. Rapidly advancing capabilities in artificial intelligence (AI) have expanded headache-related research with the potential to solve unmet needs in the headache field. We provide […]

It is unknown whether growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) is associated with chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) and whether or not its association with incident cardiovascular disease (CVD) changes according to […]

The aim of this economic analysis was to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of differential target multiplexed spinal cord stimulation (DTM-SCS) for treating chronic intractable low back pain, compared with conventional spinal […]

Neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a leading cause of intestine inflammatory disease, and macrophage is significantly activated during NEC development. Posttranslational modifications (PTMs) of proteins, particularly ubiquitination, play critical roles […]

The dorsal root ganglion (DRG) is the primary neuron responsible for transmitting peripheral pain signals to the central nervous system and plays a crucial role in pain transduction. Modulation of […]

It is widely acknowledged that the aging process is linked to the accumulation of damaged and misfolded proteins. This phenomenon is accompanied by a decrease in proteasome (c20S) activity, concomitant […]

Empathy toward suffering individuals serves as potent driver for prosocial behavior. However, it remains unclear whether prosociality induced by empathy for another person’s pain persists once that person’s suffering diminishes. […]

To describe the frequency of primary care seeking for neck or back-related conditions among people with chronic neck and low back pain and to develop prediction models of primary care […]

Chronic pelvic pain (CPP) is a multifactorial syndrome that can substantially affect a patient’s quality of life. Endometriosis is one cause of CPP, and alterations of the immune and microbiome […]

New daily persistent headache (NDPH) is a rare primary headache with unclear pathogenesis. Neuroimaging studies of NDPH are limited, and controversy still exists. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is commonly used […]

To characterize the long-term (56-week) benefits of continuous onabotulinumtoxinA treatment response in individuals with chronic migraine (CM) who achieved reduction to <15 headache days/month with treatment.

To assess the prevalence and impact of neck pain during headache among respondents with migraine in the multicountry Chronic Migraine Epidemiology and Outcomes – International (CaMEO-I) Study.

The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) is known to affect diverse physiological processes that affect the functioning of many key organs. Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) modulates a variety of bioactive peptides associated with […]

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is caused by several factors, including reactive free oxygen radicals (ROS)-induced excessive Ca influx. Transient receptor potential (TRP) vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) is a member of the […]

Temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis (TMJOA) is a severe form of temporomandibular joint disorders (TMD), and orofacial inflammatory allodynia is one of its common symptoms which lacks effective treatment. N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR), […]

Osteoarthritis (OA) involves cartilage degeneration, thereby causing inflammation and pain. Cardiovascular diseases, such as dyslipidemia, are risk factors for OA; however, the mechanism is unclear. We investigated the effect of […]

Expectations are highlighted as a key component in placebo effects. However, there are different approaches to whether and how placebo studies should account for expectations, and the direct contribution has […]

LX-9211 is a drug designed to treat neuropathic pain conditions. It functions by inhibiting the adaptor-associated kinase 1 (AAK1) enzyme which promotes clathrin-dependent endocytosis. Preclinical studies have shown that LX-9211 […]

Dry skin is common to many pruritic diseases and is difficult to improve with oral traditional antihistamines. Recently, increasing evidence indicated that histamine H4 receptor (H4R) plays an important role […]

Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) has emerged as a treatment option for patients with chronic pancreatitis (CP) who experience pain that does not respond to standard interventions. However, there is a […]

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) often causes damage to small nerve fibers, leading to distressing painful and autonomic symptoms. Despite this, Small Fiber Neuropathy (SFN) remains an underrecognized complication for SLE […]

Hemophilia is an inherited bleeding disorder. Bleeding, and in particular joint hemorrhage results in chronic arthropathy and disability. Acute and chronic pain are frequent and limit activity and participation and […]

Chronic pain poses a significant health challenge worldwide and is associated with both disability and reduced quality of life. Sleep disturbances are reported in 67% to 88% of patients with […]

Pain caused by lumbar disc herniation (LDH) severely compromises patients’ quality of life. The combination of steroid and local anesthetics is routinely employed in clinics to alleviate LDH-induced pain. However, […]

The flexion-relaxation phenomenon (FRP) is frequently absent among non-specific chronic low back pain (NSCLBP) patients. However, it is unknown whether this absence is intrinsic to their pathology or merely a […]

Nerve injury can not only lead to sensory and motor dysfunction, but also be complicated with neuropathic pain (NPP), which brings great psychosomatic injury to patients. At present, there is […]

Telemedicine and digital health represent alternative approaches for clinical practice; indeed, its potential in healthcare services for prevention, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, and disease monitoring is widely acknowledged. These are all […]

No comparative effectiveness data exist on nonopioid analgesics and nonbenzodiazepine anxiolytics to treat pain with anxiety. We examined the relationship between drug class and central nervous system (CNS) active drug […]

The current analgesics often prevent patients from getting effective treatment due to their adverse effects. Cannabidiol (CBD) is well tolerated, has few side effects and has been extensively investigated in […]

Chronic primary pain (CPP) occurs in the absence of tissue injury and includes temporomandibular disorders (TMD), fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). CPP is commonly considered a stress-related […]

Although studies have described inequities in spinal cord stimulation (SCS) receipt, there is a lack of information to inform system-level changes to support health care equity. This study evaluated whether […]

Preclinical models of osteochondral defects (OCDs) are fundamental test beds to evaluate treatment modalities before clinical translation. To increase the rigor and reproducibility of translational science for a robust “go […]

Buprenorphine is an effective yet underused treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD).

Multisite chronic pain (MCP) and site-specific chronic pain (SSCP) may be influenced by circulating inflammatory proteins, but the causal relationship remains unknown. To overcome this limitation, two-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization […]

Spinal cord injury (SCI) often leads to neuropathic pain that negatively affects quality of life. Several qualitative research studies in individuals with SCI who experience neuropathic pain indicate the lack […]

Hydrogen sulfide (HS), together with carbon monoxide (CO) and nitric oxide (NO), is recognized as a vital gasotransmitter. HS is biosynthesized by enzymatic pathways in the skin and exerts significant […]

Although diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain (DPNP) and depression have been recognized for many years, their co-morbidity relationship and effective treatment choices remain uncertain.

Diabetic distal symmetric polyneuropathy is the most common type of peripheral neuropathy complication of diabetes mellitus. Neuroinflammation is emerging as an important contributor to diabetes-induced neuropathy. Long-term hyperglycemia results in […]

Acute sleep deprivation in experimental studies has been shown to induce pain hypersensitivity in females. However, the impact of natural sleep deficiency and fluctuations across the week on pain perception […]

Moderate to severe atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that often requires continuous long-term systemic management. Long-term safety and efficacy data for treatment options are critically important.

The use of digital pain management interventions has grown since the Covid 19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to systematically review and synthesise evidence from qualitative studies regarding […]

Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) is a common pelvic pain syndrome in males, seriously affecting patients’ quality of life. For a long time, CP/CPPS has been considered a complex […]

Several innovative digital technologies have begun to be applied to diagnosing and treating migraine. We reviewed the potential benefits and opportunities from delivering migraine care through comprehensive digital clinics.

Herpes Zoster in humans is the result of varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection. Injecting rats with varicella zoster virus produces pain similar to herpes zoster “shingles” pain in humans. . […]

To determine the risk of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) in patients with acute herpes zoster (HZ), this study developed and validated a novel clinical prediction model by incorporating a relevant peripheral […]

Endometriosis, characterized by extrauterine endometrial tissue, leads to irregular bleeding and pelvic pain. Menstrual retrograde theory suggests fragments traverse fallopian tubes, causing inflammation and scar tissue. Prevalent among infertile women, […]

To develop and administer an assessment tool for facilitating patient-clinician discussions regarding amputation-related pain and sensation.

Pediatric headache is an increasing medical problem that has adverse effects on children’s quality of life, academic performance, and social functioning. Children with primary headaches exhibit enhanced sensory sensitivity compared […]

Substance use disorders, including alcohol use disorder, are a public health concern that affect more than 150 million people globally. The opioid antagonist naltrexone is being increasingly prescribed to treat […]

Low back pain (LBP) is a debilitating phenomenon that significantly impacts quality-of-life (QOL). The PainDETECT questionnaire (PD-Q) is a screening tool aimed at distinguishing nociceptive pain (NoP) and neuropathic pain […]

Activation of cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1R) in the nervous system modulates the processing of acute and chronic pain. CB1R activity is regulated by desensitization and internalization. SH3-containing GRB2-like protein 3-interacting […]

Ketamine has emerged as a promising treatment alternative for the management of chronic pain. Despite encouraging findings in civilian populations, and favourable results from trials examining its efficacy in military […]

Zinc is a ubiquitous contaminant in many buffers, purified products and common labware that has previously been suggested to impact on the results of functional GlyR studies and may inadvertently […]

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a debilitating side effect of cancer treatment that significantly impacts patients’ quality of life. This study investigated the effects of targeting metabolic pathways on bortezomib-induced […]

Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is the leading cause of years lived with disability worldwide. Transcutaneous electrotherapies have been widely used to treat CLBP but, with the partial exception of […]

Migraine is a global public health concern, affecting both social and individual well-being. Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), a crucial neuropeptide, holds important research value in understanding migraine pathogenesis. CGRP receptor […]

Pain can be defined as an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with or resembling that associated with actual or potential tissue damage. Though consistent with this definition, different types […]

Intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) is a common orthopaedic disease and an important cause of lower back pain, which seriously affects the work and life of patients and causes a large […]

Interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS) is an at least 6-mo noninfectious bladder inflammation of unknown origin characterized by chronic suprapubic, abdominal, and/or pelvic pain. Although the term cystitis suggests an […]

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) combined with hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) is an important cause of various fatal comorbidities of RA. There is no precise conclusion about the cause of this disease.

Attentional bias (AB) is believed to be an important factor in the development and maintenance of both opioid use disorder (OUD) and chronic pain. Cannabis and its main psychoactive constituent, […]

The study aimed to assess the analgesic effect of 10 Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) targeted to the prefrontal cortex (PFC) region on neuropathic pain (NPP) in rats with […]

Medication overuse headache (MOH) is a chronic headache disorder that results from excessive use of acutely symptomatic headache medications, leading to more frequent and severe headaches. This study aims to […]

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and migraine are public health concerns worldwide. No observational study has conclusively elucidated the causal relationship between these two conditions. We employed Mendelian randomization (MR) methods […]

Despite high rates of pain-related concerns among primary care patients and associated increases in health care costs (Gore et al., 2012; Mills et al., 2016), psychological or behavioral treatments that […]

Monoclonal antibodies targeting calcitonin gene-related peptide (anti-CGRP mAbs) have shown clinical effectiveness and safety in randomized clinical studies. However, long-term studies in clinical practice remain limited.

Neuropathic pain is a type of chronic pain caused by an injury or somatosensory nervous system disease. Drugs and exercise could effectively relieve neuropathic pain, but no treatment can completely […]

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is one of the most prevalent intractable chronic itch diseases worldwide. In recent years, new molecular-targeted drugs have emerged, but side effects and economic challenges remain. Therefore, […]

Informed by Minority Stress Theory, to investigate disparities in pain intensity, interference, and care in patients with spinal cord injuries (SCI) based on demographic features.

Torture can result in impaired functional mobility, reduced quality of life, and persistent pain. Physical therapy (PT) is recommended for holistic care of survivors of torture (SOT), however there are […]

Breast cancer survival rates have increased significantly, underscoring the importance of enhancing long-term health-related quality of life. Breast reconstruction following mastectomy has emerged as a common approach that contributes to […]

The aim of this study was to assess changes in validated patient-reported outcome measures after initiation of cannabis-based medicinal products (CBMPs) and the safety of CBMPs in patients with inflammatory […]

This poem was inspired by a patient I followed during my third year of medical school. It invites the reader to ponder the dangers of implicit and explicit bias toward […]

Itch is a unique sensory experience that is responded to by scratching. How pruritogens, which are mechanical and chemical stimuli with the potential to cause itch, engage specific pathways in […]

Chronic axial low back pain (CLBP) that is not responsive to medication management or physical therapy often requires significant clinical intervention. Several interventional pain management options exist, including a 60-day […]

Paclitaxel is a chemotherapy drug widely used for the treatment of various cancers based on its ability to potently stabilize cellular microtubules and block division in cancer cells. Paclitaxel-based treatment, […]

Sensitization of spinal nociceptive circuits plays a crucial role in neuropathic pain. This sensitization depends on new gene expression that is primarily regulated via transcriptional and translational control mechanisms. The […]

Gabapentin (GBP), an antiepileptic drug to treat epilepsy and neuropathic pain, has become an emerging pollutant in aquatic environments. Previous results suggested that GBP can cause a potential toxicity on […]

This preface introduces the Journal of Neurochemistry Special Issue on pain research. While acute pain provides important sensory information, which aids in the protection of an organism, it can in […]

Primary headaches (PH) are a group of disorders greatly impairing quality of life, highly prevalent in growing population. Previous studies suggested a rhinogenic involvement in PH episodes. Modifications of nasal […]

Health care is a major driver of greenhouse gas emissions and is closely intertwined with industrial processes responsible for air, water, and soil pollution. Chronic pain – particularly as it […]