Plos One
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An IFN-γ response to M. tuberculosis-specific antigens is an effective biomarker for M. tuberculosis infection but it cannot discriminate between latent TB infection and active TB disease. Combining a number of cytokine/chemokine responses to M. tuberculosis antigens may enable differentiation of latent TB from active disease. ⋯ CXCL10 and TNF-α may be used as adjunct markers alongside an IFN-γ release assay to diagnose M. tuberculosis infection, and IL-17 and IL-10 production may differentiate individuals with LTBI from active TB.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Altered cortical responsiveness to pain stimuli after high frequency electrical stimulation of the skin in patients with persistent pain after inguinal hernia repair.
High Frequency electrical Stimulation (HFS) of the skin induces enhanced brain responsiveness expressed as enhanced Event-Related Potential (ERP) N1 amplitude to stimuli applied to the surrounding unconditioned skin in healthy volunteers. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether this enhanced ERP N1 amplitude could be a potential marker for altered cortical sensory processing in patients with persistent pain after surgery. ⋯ The ERP N1 effect, induced after HFS, was not different between patients with vs. without persistent pain. The decreasing P2 amplitude was not observed in the patients without pain and also not in the previous healthy volunteer study and thus might be a marker for altered cortical sensory processing in patients with persistent pain after surgery.
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Regional reductions in gray matter (GM) have been reported in several chronic somatic and visceral pain conditions, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and chronic pancreatitis. Reported GM reductions include insular and anterior cingulate cortices, even though subregions are generally not specified. The majority of published studies suffer from limited sample size, heterogeneity of populations, and lack of analyses for sex differences. We aimed to characterize regional changes in cortical thickness (CT) in a large number of well phenotyped IBS patients, taking into account the role of sex related differences. ⋯ Significant, sex related differences in CT are present in both HCs and in IBS patients. The biphasic neuroplastic changes in female IBS patients are related to symptom severity.
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Psychological features have been related to trunk muscle activation patterns in low back pain (LBP). We hypothesised higher pain-related fear would relate to changes in trunk mechanical properties, such as higher trunk stiffness. ⋯ Fear of movement is positively (but weakly) associated with trunk stiffness. This provides preliminary support an interaction between biological and psychological features of LBP, suggesting this condition may be best understood if these domains are not considered in isolation.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging and volumetric measurements of the brain in patients with postcancer fatigue: a randomized controlled trial.
Postcancer fatigue is a frequently occurring problem, impairing quality of life. Until now, little is known about (neuro) physiological factors determining postcancer fatigue. For non-cancer patients with chronic fatigue syndrome, certain characteristics of brain morphology and metabolism have been identified in previous studies. We investigated whether these volumetric and metabolic traits are a reflection of fatigue in general and thus also of importance for postcancer fatigue. ⋯ No relation was found between postcancer fatigue and the studied volumetric and metabolic markers. This may suggest that, although postcancer fatigue and chronic fatigue syndrome show strong resemblances as a clinical syndrome, the underlying physiology is different.