Functional somatic syndrome: how it could be relevant to rheumatologists

Functional Somatic Syndromes Are Associated With Varied Postoperative Outcomes and Increased Opioid Use After Spine Surgery: A Systematic Review

STUDY DESIGN

Systematic Review.

OBJECTIVE

To perform a systematic review assessing the relationship between functional somatic syndromes (FSSs) and clinical outcomes after spine surgery.

METHODS

A systematic review of online databases (PubMed and Web of Science) through December 2021 was conducted via PRISMA guidelines to identify all studies investigating the impact of at least one FSS (fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), chronic headaches/migraines, interstitial cystitis, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple chemical sensitivity) on outcomes after spine surgery. Outcomes of interest included patient reported outcome measures (PROMs), postoperative opioid use, cost of care, complications, and readmission rates.

RESULTS

A total of 207 records were identified. Seven studies (n = 40,011 patients) met inclusion criteria with a mean MINORS score of 16.6 out of 24. Four studies (n = 21,086) reported postoperative opioid use; fibromyalgia was a strong risk factor for long-term opioid use after surgery whereas the association with chronic migraines remains unclear. Two studies (n = 233) reported postoperative patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) with mixed results suggesting a possible association between fibromyalgia and less favorable PROMs. One study (n = 18,692) reported higher postoperative complications in patients with fibromyalgia.

CONCLUSION

Patients with fibromyalgia and possibly migraines are at higher risk for prolonged postoperative opioid use and less favorable PROMs after spine surgery. There is limited research on the relationship between other Functional somatic syndromes (FSSs) and outcomes following spine surgery. Growing evidence suggests the variation in outcomes after spine procedures may be attributed to non-identifiable organic patient factors such as FSSs.

Muscle Decline in Aging and Neuromuscular Disorders - Mechanisms and Countermeasures: Terme Euganee, Padova (Italy), April 13-16, 2016

Not available.

A sudden onset of a pseudo-neurological syndrome after HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvated vaccine: might it be an autoimmune/inflammatory syndrome induced by adjuvants (ASIA) presenting as a somatoform disorder?

In last centuries, vaccines reduced the incidence of several infectious diseases. In last decades, some vaccines aimed at preventing also some cancers, where viruses play a causative role. However, several adverse events have been described after vaccines, but a causal relationship has been established only in a minority of cases. Here, we describe a pseudo-neurological syndrome occurred shortly after the administration of the bivalent HPV vaccine. Some autoimmune disorders, including neurological demyelinating diseases, have been reported after HPV vaccines, but the patient showed no organic lesions. The patient was diagnosed as having a functional somatoform syndrome, which was supposed to be autoimmune/inflammatory syndrome induced by adjuvants (ASIA), seen the temporal link with vaccination and the presence of anti-phospholipid autoantibodies. Immunological mechanisms of vaccines-and of adjuvants-have not been completely elucidated yet, and although there is no evidence of statistical association with many post-vaccination events, a causal link with vaccine cannot be excluded in some individuals.

Return to Competition in a Chronic Low Back Pain Runner: Beyond a Therapeutic Exercise Approach, a Case Report

Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is a disabling condition affecting both quality of life and performance in athletes. Several approaches have been proposed in the field of physiotherapy, manual therapy, physical exercise and counseling. None apparently is outdoing the other with the exception of trunk stability exercises in specific conditions. The present paper describes a clinical success in managing a CLBP runner affected by MRI documented disk herniation via dietary change. Dietary changes allowed our patient that had failed with previous standard therapeutic approaches, to regain an optimal pain-free condition. We advance the hypothesis that a visceral-autonomic concomitant or primary disturbance possibly generating mild gastrointestinal discomfort in CLBP patients should be ruled out as a possible cause of pain and disability at the somato-motor level.

Chronic opioid use in fibromyalgia syndrome: a clinical review

Chronic opioid therapy in the treatment of chronic nonmalignant pain has increased drastically over the past decade. This is a worrisome trend in general, but specifically, given pathophysiologic characteristics seen in fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome patients, the use of this class of medication deserves special scrutiny. We first describe the current understanding of the etiology and pathophysiology of FM, including the role of genetic and environmental factors in the development of this syndrome. We then discuss the biologic effects of opioid use. Next, we review the pharmaceutical treatment options for FM, including 3 Food and Drug Administration-approved medications, and the evolution of treatment guidelines since 2004. We then highlight the various consequences associated with the mechanism of action of opioids and the specific concerns for FM patients.Finally, summarizing the existing literature, we make the case that chronic opioid use is inappropriate in the treatment of FM because of the interaction of unique pathophysiologic characteristics of the patients and effects associated with chronic opioid use.

Abnormal overexpression of mastocytes in skin biopsies of fibromyalgia patients

Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded skin tissue sections were collected from a matched cohort of 63 fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) patients and 49 volunteers from the general population with both alpha1-antitrypsin (AAT) normal and deficiency variants. These tissues were examined for the expression of the broad-spectrum inhibitor AAT, the serine proteinases elastase and tryptase, the proinflammatory cytokines MCP-1 and TNFα, the endothelium biomarker VEGF, and the inflammation/nociception-related receptor PAR(2). The most relevant finding of the study was a significantly increased number of mast cells (MCs) in the papillary dermis of all FMS patients (greater than or equal to five to 14 per microscopic high power field) compared to zero to one in controls (p < 0.001). MCs strongly stained with tryptase, AAT and PAR(2) antibodies, exhibited a spindle-like shape and were uniformly distributed around blood vessels and appendages. MCP-1 and VEGF expressed weak/moderate positivity in most samples, with a higher expression in controls than in FMS patients (p < 0.001 and 0.051, respectively). No differences in elastase and TNFα were found between both groups. Moreover, no histological differences were found between samples from AAT deficiency and normal AAT phenotypes. Our results indicate that FMS is a MC-associated condition. MCs are present in skin and mucosal surfaces throughout the human body, and are easily stimulated by a number of physical, psychological, and chemical triggers to degranulate, releasing several proinflammatory products which are able to generate nervous peripheral stimuli causing CNS hypersensitivity, local, and systemic symptoms. Our findings open new avenues of research on FMS mechanisms and will benefit the diagnosis of patients and the development of therapeutics.

Developments in the scientific and clinical understanding of fibromyalgia

Our understanding of fibromyalgia (FM) has made significant advances over the past decade. The current concept views FM as the result of central nervous system malfunction resulting in amplification of pain transmission and interpretation. Research done over the past years has demonstrated a role for polymorphisms of genes in the serotoninergic, dopaminergic and catecholaminergic systems in the etiopathogenesis of FM. Various external stimuli such as infection, trauma and stress may contribute to the development of the syndrome. The management of FM requires an integrated approach combining pharmacological and nonpharmacological modalities. The recent Food and Drugs Administration approval of pregabalin, duloxetine and milnacipran as medications for FM may herald a new era for the development of medications with higher specificity and efficacy for the condition. As our understanding of the biological basis and the genetic underpinning of FM increases, we hope to gain a better understanding of the true nature of the disorder, to better classify patients and to attain more rational therapeutic modalities.