Pain in systemic connective tissue diseases

Pain is frequent in patients with connective tissue diseases (CTDs), particularly those affected by systemic sclerosis (SSc) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in which it is virtually ubiquitous and can have different causes. The SLE classi fi cation criteria include pain associated with musculoskeletal involve- ment, which are frequently the initial symptom of SLE and can include arthralgia, arthritis and/or myalgia. Chronic widespread pain, the cornerstone of fi bromyalgia (FM), is also frequently associated with CTDs. Chronic pain has a considerable impact on mental health, and the professional and family lives of patients. It can be due to many disorders, but there are few reports concerning its prevalence during the course of other diseases. It is essential to identify the origin of pain in CTDs in order to avoid dangerous over-treatment in patients with co-existing widespread pain. Effective pain management is a primary goal of patient care, although it has not been investigated in detail in patients with SSc

Pain in Sjögren's syndrome

Sjögren's syndrome (SjS) is an autoimmune disease that affects the salivary and lacrimal glands, but it can also have extra-glandular manifestations. Although pain has not yet been fully studied and characterized, it is a symptom that can be often found in patients with SjS, who mainly complain of neuropathic pain, followed by nociceptive pain. The latter when combined with widespread dysfunctional symptoms is defined fibromyalgia. The aim of this work is to analyze the scientific literature on the presence of pain in patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome

Pain in Sjögren's syndrome.

Sjogren's syndrome (SjS) is an autoimmune disease that affects the salivary and lacrimal glands, but it can also have extra-glandular manifestations. Although pain has not yet been fully studied and characterized, it is a symptom that can be often found in patients with SjS, who mainly complain of neuropathic pain, followed by nociceptive pain. The latter when combined with widespread dysfunctional symptoms is defined fibromyalgia. The aim of this work is to analyze the scientific literature on the presence of pain in patients with primary Sjogren's syndrome

Biomarkers in fibromyalgia: a review

Camillo Giacomelli,* Francesca Sernissi,* Alessandra Rossi, Stefano Bombardieri, Laura BazzichiRheumatology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy *These authors contributed equally to the manuscript Abstract: Fibromyalgia is a common syndrome diagnosed by clinical criteria. The main symptom of fibromyalgia is pain, but patients frequently also complain about other nonspecific symptoms, such as headache, sleep disturbance, mood disorder, and cognitive impairment. In the light of the multifactorial origin of the disease and of the lack of objective diagnostic findings, several attempts have been made to find a reliable biomarker. For this reason, over the years, a number of patients and various biological samples have been studied, using many different approaches and techniques. Despite this, none of these studies has been able to find the proper biomarker. The aim of this review is to provide a critical overview of the current environment characterizing the search for fibromyalgia biomarkers. Keywords: genetics, proteomics, oxidative stress, fibromyalgi

Gender differences on psychological factors in fibromyalgia: a systematic review on male’s experience

Objectives: Fibromyalgia (FM) is highly prevalent in female gender. Scarce attention has been given to the exploration and description of this syndrome, from a psychological point of view, when occurring in males. The aim of the present study is to develop further knowledge, and to summarise the literature regarding subjective psychological experience, characteristics of symptoms presentation (both onset and development), and treatment options for FM in male patients, in order to highlight differences with FM in females. Methods: All studies published between January 1993 and February 2020 using PubMed and PsycInfo were included, provided that they met the following criteria: 1) written in English; 2) original articles on studies with a longitudinal design; 3) prospective or retrospective, observational (analytical or descriptive), experimental or quasi-experimental, controlled or noncontrolled studies. Reviews and nonoriginal articles (i.e, editorials, Letters to the Editor, and book chapters) were not included. We utilised the following keywords: (male), (female), (fibromyalgia), combined with Boolean operators 'AND' and 'NOT'. Results: We found an initial number of 55 papers. Duplicated records were excluded (n=13), as well as papers not focusing on male patients or not fulfilling inclusion criteria (n=25), narrowing the research to 17 papers. Conclusions: FM male patients consider their masculine identity as inefficiently re-negotiated after symptoms' onset. FM males tend to endure pain for longer periods of time than females before seeking for treatment; bodily symptoms are prevalent with a compromised exploration of feelings about FM. Unfortunately, there is still paucity of evidence on clinical characterisation and treatment options when FM occurs in males. Moreover, no studies addressed the issue of the psychopharmacological/non-pharmacological management of males with FM and comorbid psychiatric syndromes

A(2B )adenosine receptor activity is reduced in neutrophils from patients with systemic sclerosis

We conducted the present study to investigate protein expression and functioning of A(2A )and A(2B )adenosine receptors (ARs) in neutrophils of patients affected by systemic sclerosis (SSc). The presence of A(2A )and A(2B )ARs was assessed by immunoblotting using specific antibodies. Equilibrium A(2A )and A(2B )ARs binding parameters were evaluated by radioligand binding assay. Functional studies were conducted to investigate coupling of the A(2B )AR to the adenylyl cyclase pathway. This is the first report of the use of Western blot analysis to confirm the presence of A(2A )and A(2B )ARs in human neutrophils. No significant changes in A(2A )AR binding parameters or expression levels were detected between SSc patients and healthy control individuals. A significant decrease (65%) in the maximum density of A(2B )AR binding sites occurred in SSc neutrophils, whereas no changes in the affinity constant values were found. Moreover, a decrease in A(2B )AR mediated adenylyl cyclase activity was observed in patients with SSc. Our findings demonstrate the occurrence of selective alterations in A(2B )AR density and signalling in SSc

Antipolymer antibody in Italian fibromyalgic patients

The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the presence of antipolymer antibody (APA) seropositivity in 285 Italian patients affected by primary fibromyalgia (FM) and to verify whether APA levels correlate with disease severity and with cytokine levels