Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 24, 2025
09:16
Dynamic Quantitative Sensory Testing to Characterize Central Pain Processing
Published on: February 16, 2017
17.1K
Assessing central sensitization with quantitative sensory testing in inflammatory rheumatic diseases: A systematic
Anne-Priscille Trouvin1, Nadine Attal2, Serge Perrot1
1INSERM U987, Paris, France; Centre d'évaluation et traitement de la douleur, GHU Paris centre-Cochin, Paris, France; Université de Paris, Paris, France.
Joint Bone Spine
|May 3, 2022
Summary
Pain in inflammatory rheumatic diseases is linked to reduced pressure pain thresholds (allodynia). However, evidence for central sensitization, a key chronic pain mechanism, remains inconclusive due to inconsistent quantitative sensory testing results.
Area of Science:
- Rheumatology
- Pain Medicine
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Chronic pain persists in inflammatory rheumatic diseases despite effective treatments.
- Central sensitization is a proposed mechanism for chronic pain, measurable by quantitative sensory testing (QST).
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically review the literature on QST in adult patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases.
- To investigate pain thresholds, temporal summation (TS), and conditioned pain modulation (CPM) in these patients.
Main Methods:
- Systematic literature search of Pubmed and Embase up to December 2021.
- Included studies focused on QST (pain thresholds, TS, CPM) in adult inflammatory rheumatic diseases.
- Assessed data quality using NIH Quality Assessment tools; excluded reviews and studies on children.
Main Results:
- 27 studies (1875 patients, 795 controls) were identified.
- Reduced pressure pain threshold (allodynia) was observed in 12/14 controlled studies of rheumatoid arthritis and spondyloarthritis.
- Results for TS and CPM were inconsistent due to heterogeneity in patient populations and study standardization.
Conclusions:
- Pain in chronic inflammatory rheumatism is associated with pressure allodynia.
- The hypothesis of central sensitization involvement in pain processing remains unconfirmed due to heterogeneous QST data.
