• Alícia Deitos, Jairo A Dussán-Sarria, Andressa de Souza, Liciane Medeiros, Maria da Graça Tarragô, Francislea Sehn, Mônica Chassot, Simone Zanette, André Schwertner, Felipe Fregni, Iraci L S Torres, and Wolnei Caumo.
• *Post-Graduate Program in Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) †Laboratory of Pain and Neuromodulation ‡Postgraduate Program in Health and Human development, La Salle Universitary Center, Canoas §Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service ††Pain Treatment and Palliative Care Service, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA) **Pharmacology Department, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde ‡‡Pain and Anesthesia at Department of Surgery in Medical School at Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, Brazil ∥Spaulding Neuromodulation Center, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown Departments of ¶Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation #Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
• Clin J Pain. 2015 Nov 1; 31 (11): 959-67.

Background And ObjectivesCentral sensitivity syndrome (CSS) encompasses disorders with overlapping symptoms in a spectrum of structural pathology from persistent somatic nociception (eg, osteoarthritis) to absence of tissue injury such as in fibromyalgia, chronic tension-type headache, and myofascial pain syndrome. Likewise, the spectrum of the neuroplasticity mediators associated with CSS might present a pattern of clinical utility.MethodsWe studied the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukins 6 (IL-6) and IL-10 in female patients with CSS absent of structural pathology (chronic tension-type headache [n=30], myofascial pain syndrome [n=29], fibromyalgia [n=22]); with CSS due to persistent somatic/visceral nociception (osteoarthritis [n=27] and endometriosis [n=32]); and in pain-free controls (n=37).ResultsPatients with CSS absent of structural pathology presented higher serum TNF-α (28.61±12.74 pg/mL) and BDNF (49.87±31.86 ng/mL) than those with persistent somatic/visceral nociception (TNF-α=17.35±7.38 pg/mL; BDNF=20.44±8.30 ng/mL) and controls (TNF-α=21.41±5.74 pg/mL, BDNF=14.09±11.80 ng/mL). Moreover, CSS patients absent of structural pathology presented lower IL levels. Receiver operator characteristics analysis showed the ability of BDNF to screen CSS (irrespective of the presence of structural pathology) from controls (cutoff=13.31 ng/mL, area under the curve [AUC]=0.86, sensitivity=95.06%, specificity=56.76%); and its ability to identify persistent nociception in CSS patients when experiencing moderate-severe depressive symptoms (AUC=0.81; cutoff=42.83 ng/mL, sensitivity=56.80%, specificity=100%). When the level of pain measured on the visual analog scale was <5 and moderate-severe depressive symptoms were observed TNF-α discriminated structural pathology in the chronic pain conditions (AUC=0.97; cutoff=22.11 pg/mL, sensitivity=90%, specificity=91.3%).ConclusionNeuroplasticity mediators could play a role as screening tools for pain clinicians, and as validation of the complex and diffuse symptoms of these patients.

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