SynthesisFrontiers in immunology2022
Immune-inflammatory and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis biomarkers are altered in patients with non-specific low back pain: A systematic review.
Synthesis in Frontiers in immunology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 31 citations in OpenAlex.
- Common auricular acupoint patterns for postoperative recovery across laparoscopic surgeries: a data mining-based systematic analysis.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Pooled it
- Effectiveness of Physical Activity in the Management of Nonspecific Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2024Pooled it
- Association Between Postoperative Pain and Inflammatory Biomarkers After Ovariohysterectomy in Dogs: A Pilot Study.Veterinary medicine and science · 2026Article
- Not All Microbiomes Reflect Chronic Pain: Evidence from the Urinary Tract in a Case-Control Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Predictive Value of Anxiety State During Acute Herpes Zoster for the Development of Postherpetic Neuralgia.Actas espanolas de psiquiatria · 2026Article
- Neurophysiological, Radiological, and Molecular Biomarkers of Pain-Related Conditions: An Umbrella Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Effect of chronic stress on human endocrine function: A biomarker-based study.Bioinformation · 2026Article
- Central Sensitization Severity in Chronic Low Back Pain: Associations with Sleep, Distress, Cortisol, and Visuospatial Working Memory.Journal of pain research · 2026Article
- Article
- Serum GDF15 as a supportive biomarker in female fibromyalgia patients based on a prospective case-control study.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Persistent pain signaling and stress response in a mouse model of inflammatory low back pain.Pain reports · 2025Article
- Prevalence and clinical characteristics of fibromyalgia syndrome in individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A cross-sectional study.The Journal of international medical research · 2025Article
- Causal effects of sleep behaviors on temporomandibular disorders and pain: a bidirectional mendelian randomization study.Journal of oral & facial pain and headache · 2025Article
- A review and empirical findings of fasciae and muscle interactions in low back pain.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Article
- Depression and Insomnia Mediate the Link Between Problematic Internet Use and Neuropathic Low Back Pain: Evidence from a Cross-Sectional Survey.Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare · 2025Article
- The Difficulties of Managing Pain in People Living with Frailty: The Potential for Digital Phenotyping.Drugs & aging · 2024Article
- Does Osteopathic Heart-Focused Palpation Modify Heart Rate Variability in Stressed Participants with Musculoskeletal Pain? A Randomised Controlled Pilot Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Article
- Comparing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and depressive disorder in terms of inflammation-related biomarkers.Archives of medical science : AMS · 2023Article
- Effect of Moxibustion on Inflammatory Cytokines for Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis and Meta-Regression.Therapeutics and clinical risk management · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
This systematic review aimed to investigate immune-inflammatory and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis biomarkers in individuals with non-specific low back pain (NSLBP) compared to healthy control. The search was performed in five databases until 4 November 2021. Two reviewers independently conducted screenings, data extraction, risk of bias, and methodological quality assessment of 14 unique studies. All studies reported the source of the fluid analyzed: nine studies used serum, two used plasma, one used serum and plasma, and two studies used salivary cortisol. We found preliminary and limited evidence (only one study for each biomarker) of increased levels in growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15), interleukin-23 (IL-23), transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), and soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 (sTNF-R1) in NSLBP. Inconsistent and limited evidence was identified for interleukin-10 (IL-10). Although C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) levels appear to increase in NSLBP, only one study per each biomarker reported statistically significant differences. Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), interleukin-17 (IL-17), interferon gamma (IFN-γ), and high-sensitivity CRP (hsCRP) showed no significant differences. Regarding cortisol, one study showed a significant increase and another a significant decrease. More robust evidence between GDF-15, IL-23, TGF-β, and sTNF-R1 with NSLBP is needed. Moreover, contrary to the findings reported in previous studies, when comparing results exclusively with healthy control, insufficient robust evidence for IL-6, TNF-α, and CRP was found in NSLBP. In addition, cortisol response (HPA-related biomarker) showed a dysregulated functioning in NSLBP, with incongruent evidence regarding its directionality. Therefore, our effort is to find adjusted evidence to conclude which immune-inflammatory and HPA axis biomarkers are altered in NSLBP and how much their levels are affected. Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42020176153, identifier CRD42020176153.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.