Genetic implications in quality palliative care and preventing opioid crisis in cancer-related pain management

Studies on Pain Associated with Anxiety or Depression in the Last 10 Years: A Bibliometric Analysis

Background

The prevalence of pain comorbid and anxiety/depression in clinical observations has been high, and the number of related publications has increased in recent years. Nevertheless, few studies have used bibliometric methods to analyze the scientific research on comorbid pain and depression/anxiety. The aim of this study was to systematically examine the trends in global scientific research on comorbid pain and depression/anxiety from 2012 to 2022.

Methods

Papers published between 2012 and 2022 were identified in the Web of Science database. Publications that examined comorbid pain and depression/anxiety were included. The language was limited to English. CiteSpace, Excel and VOSviewer were used to analyze the volume of publications, countries, institutions, authors, cocited authors, and keywords.

Results

A total of 30,290 papers met the inclusion criteria of the study. Using CiteSpace, VOSviewer and Excel, the results showed that the United States (10,614 publications), Harvard University (1195 publications), and Jensen, Mark P. (77 publications) were the most productive country, institution, and author, respectively. The hotspots and frontiers were "relationship between depression and pain", "gender differences in pain and depression/anxiety domains", "study of specific pain types with depression/anxiety", "treatment of pain combined with anxiety/depression", and "effects of COVID-19 on patients with pain combined with depression/anxiety".

Conclusion

These findings indicate a growing interest in the field of comorbid pain and depression/anxiety. The research has been broad and deep, but there is still much room for growth. Furthermore, there is a need for more mature global collaborative networks as well as more high-quality research results in the future.

Genetic polymorphism of pleiotrophin is associated with pain experience in Japanese adults: Case-control study

Genetic factors play a role in individual differences in pain experience. Here, we performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify novel loci regulating pain processing. We conducted a 2-stage GWAS and the candidate single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) association study on pain experience using an exploratory cohort of patients with cancer pain. The confirmatory cohort comprised of participants from the general population with and without habitual use of analgesic medication. In the exploratory cohort, we evaluated pain intensity using a numerical rating scale, recorded daily opioid dosages, and calculated pain reduction rate. In the confirmatory cohort, pain experience was defined as habitual nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug usage. Using linear regression models, we identified candidate SNP in the exploratory samples, and tested the association between phenotype and experienced pain in the confirmatory samples. We found 1 novel SNP (rs11764598)-located on the gene encoding for pleiotrophin on chromosome 7-that passed the genome-wide suggestive significance at 20% false discovery rate (FDR) correction in the exploratory samples of patients with cancer pain (P = 1.31 × 10-7, FDR = 0.101). We confirmed its significant association with daily analgesic usage in the confirmatory cohort (P = .028), although the minor allele affected pain experience in an opposite manner. We identified a novel genetic variant associated with pain experience. Further studies are required to validate the role of pleiotrophin in pain processing.

The phenomics and genetics of addictive and affective comorbidity in opioid use disorder

Opioid use disorder (OUD) creates significant public health and economic burdens worldwide. Therefore, understanding the risk factors that lead to the development of OUD is fundamental to reducing both its prevalence and its impact. Significant sources of OUD risk include co-occurring lifetime and current diagnoses of both psychiatric disorders, primarily mood disorders, and other substance use disorders, and unique and shared genetic factors. Although there appears to be pleiotropy between OUD and both mood and substance use disorders, this aspect of OUD risk is poorly understood. In this review, we describe the prevalence and clinical significance of addictive and affective comorbidities as risk factors for OUD development as a basis for rational opioid prescribing and OUD treatment and to improve efforts to prevent the disorder. We also review the genetic variants that have been associated with OUD and other addictive and affective disorders to highlight targets for future study and risk assessment protocols.