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Chronic Pain and Fibromyalgia: Biomarkers and Pathophysiology
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Chronic Pain and Fibromyalgia: Biomarkers and Pathophysiology

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Pathology, Diagnostics, and Therapeutics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2024) | Viewed by 4437

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Manuela Di Franco

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialities, Universita degli Studi di Roma La Sapienza, 00185 Rome, Italy
Interests: early arthritis; rheumatoid arthritis; inflammatory arthritis; chronic pain; fibromyalgia
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Cristina Iannuccelli

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Internal and Specialized, Sapienza Università di Roma, 00185 Rome, Italy
Interests: rheumatoid arthritis; rheumatic diseases; autoimmunity; autoantibodies; osteoporosis; autoinflammatory diseases; autoimmune disease; vasculitis; psoriatic arthritis; musculoskeletal imaging

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Fibromyalgia (FM) is one of the most disabling chronic pain syndromes and the second most common rheumatic disorder after osteoarthritis, with a global prevalence between 0.2% and 6.6%. It is clinically characterized by the presence of chronic, musculoskeletal widespread pain (WP) that is associated with fatigue, sleep disturbances and other cognitive and somatic symptoms. This broad pattern of symptoms heavily affects patients’ daily lives and activities, in addition to patients’ wellbeing.

Although the 2016 diagnostic criteria represent a step forward, the lack of biomarkers for the diagnosis of FM is still a major issue in clinical practice with considerable diagnostic difficulties, since its pathophysiology is not well-known and its symptoms are non-specific and overlap with those of many other disorders.

Neither specific diagnostic laboratory tests nor biomarkers are available for confirming FM diagnosis, but it is well-known that cytokines, chemokines, mu opioid positive B lymphocytes, genetic polymorphisms, substance P, nerve growth factor, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, glutamate, tryptophan, and melatonin are involved in the pathogenesis of FM.

In this context, understanding its pathophysiological basis is essential for hypothesizing where to direct the research for new biomarkers and new therapeutic targets.

Prof. Dr. Manuela Di Franco
Dr. Cristina Iannuccelli
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

 

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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13 pages, 532 KiB  
Article
Serum VEGF and CGRP Biomarkers: Relationships with Pain Intensity, Electric Pain, Pressure Pain Threshold, and Clinical Symptoms in Fibromyalgia—An Observational Study
by Rosa Mª Tapia-Haro, Francisco Molina, Alma Rus, Antonio Casas-Barragán, María Correa-Rodríguez and Mª Encarnación Aguilar-Ferrándiz
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(21), 15533; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242115533 - 24 Oct 2023
Viewed by 1069
Abstract
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a multifactorial syndrome, mainly characterized by chronic widespread pain, whose physiopathology is yet to be determined. Reliable biomarkers for FM and how they are associated with the symptomatology have not yet been identified. We aimed to examine the relationships among [...] Read more.
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a multifactorial syndrome, mainly characterized by chronic widespread pain, whose physiopathology is yet to be determined. Reliable biomarkers for FM and how they are associated with the symptomatology have not yet been identified. We aimed to examine the relationships among serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) levels with clinical manifestations and pain-related variables in women with FM. We conducted an observational case study with forty-seven women diagnosed with FM. Serum VEGF and CGRP levels were spectrophotometrically analyzed. We used questionnaires to measure the impact of FM and the degree of central sensitization, fatigue, and anxiety. We also assessed pain intensity, electric pain threshold and magnitude, and pressure pain threshold (PPT) in tender points. The linear regression analysis adjusting for age, menopause status, and body mass index showed that serum VEGF levels were significantly associated with the PPTs of non-dominant trapezius (β = 153.418; p = 0.033), non-dominant second metacarpal (β = 174.676; p = 0.008) and dominant tibialis anterior (β = 115.080; p = 0.049) in women with FM. We found no association between serum CGRP levels and the variables measured (p ≥ 0.152). Our results suggest that VEGF may be related to pain processing in patients with FM. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chronic Pain and Fibromyalgia: Biomarkers and Pathophysiology)
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Review

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28 pages, 840 KiB  
Review
Pain Biomarkers in Fibromyalgia Syndrome: Current Understanding and Future Directions
by Martina Favretti, Cristina Iannuccelli and Manuela Di Franco
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(13), 10443; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241310443 - 21 Jun 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2938
Abstract
Fibromyalgia is a complex and heterogeneous clinical syndrome, mainly characterized by the presence of widespread pain, possibly associated with a variety of other symptoms. Fibromyalgia can have an extremely negative impact on the psychological, physical and social lives of people affected, sometimes causing [...] Read more.
Fibromyalgia is a complex and heterogeneous clinical syndrome, mainly characterized by the presence of widespread pain, possibly associated with a variety of other symptoms. Fibromyalgia can have an extremely negative impact on the psychological, physical and social lives of people affected, sometimes causing patients to experience dramatically impaired quality of life. Nowadays, the diagnosis of fibromyalgia is still clinical, thus favoring diagnostic uncertainties and making its clear identification challenging to establish, especially in primary care centers. These difficulties lead patients to undergo innumerable clinical visits, investigations and specialist consultations, thus increasing their stress, frustration and even dissatisfaction. Unfortunately, research over the last 25 years regarding a specific biomarker for the diagnosis of fibromyalgia has been fruitless. The discovery of a reliable biomarker for fibromyalgia syndrome would be a critical step towards the early identification of this condition, not only reducing patient healthcare utilization and diagnostic test execution but also providing early intervention with guideline-based treatments. This narrative article reviews different metabolite alterations proposed as possible biomarkers for fibromyalgia, focusing on their associations with clinical evidence of pain, and highlights some new, promising areas of research in this context. Nevertheless, none of the analyzed metabolites emerge as sufficiently reliable to be validated as a diagnostic biomarker. Given the complexity of this syndrome, in the future, a panel of biomarkers, including subtype-specific biomarkers, could be considered as an interesting alternative research area. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chronic Pain and Fibromyalgia: Biomarkers and Pathophysiology)
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