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Ingegnoli F, Buoli M, Antonucci F, Coletto LA, Esposito CM, Caporali R. The Link Between Autonomic Nervous System and Rheumatoid Arthritis: From Bench to Bedside. Front Med (Lausanne) 2020; 7:589079. [PMID: 33365319 PMCID: PMC7750536 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2020.589079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Accepted: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Neuronal stimulation is an emerging field of research focused on the management and treatment of various diseases through the reestablishment of physiological homeostasis. Electrical vagus nerve stimulation has recently been proposed as a revolutionary therapeutic option for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in combination with or even as a replacement for conventional and biological drugs. In the past few years, disruption of the autonomic system has been linked to RA onset and activity. Novel research on the link between the autonomic nervous system and the immune system (immune-autonomics) has paved the way for the development of innovative RA management strategies. Clinical evidence supports this approach. Cardiovascular involvement, in terms of reduced baroreflex sensitivity and heart rate variability-derived indices, and mood disorders, common comorbidities in patients with RA, have been linked to autonomic nervous system dysfunction, which in turn is influenced by increased levels of circulating pro-inflammatory cytokines. This narrative review provides an overview of the autonomic nervous system and RA connection, discussing most of the common cardiac and mental health-related RA comorbidities and their potential relationships to systemic and joint inflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Ingegnoli
- Division of Clinical Rheumatology, Gaetano Pini Hospital, Milan, Italy.,Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, Research Center for Adult and Pediatric Rheumatic Diseases, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Massimiliano Buoli
- Department of Neurosciences and Mental Health, Fondazione Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS) Ca'Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy.,Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Flavia Antonucci
- Department of Medical Biotechnology and Translational Medicine (BIOMETRA), Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Lavinia Agra Coletto
- Division of Clinical Rheumatology, Gaetano Pini Hospital, Milan, Italy.,Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, Research Center for Adult and Pediatric Rheumatic Diseases, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Cecilia Maria Esposito
- Department of Neurosciences and Mental Health, Fondazione Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS) Ca'Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy.,Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Roberto Caporali
- Division of Clinical Rheumatology, Gaetano Pini Hospital, Milan, Italy.,Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, Research Center for Adult and Pediatric Rheumatic Diseases, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
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Sergeeva M, Rech J, Schett G, Hess A. Response to peripheral immune stimulation within the brain: magnetic resonance imaging perspective of treatment success. Arthritis Res Ther 2015; 17:268. [PMID: 26477946 PMCID: PMC4610054 DOI: 10.1186/s13075-015-0783-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic peripheral inflammation in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis leads to alterations in central pain processing and consequently to mood disorders resulting from sensitization within the central nervous system and enhanced vulnerability of the medial pain pathway. Proinflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha play an important role herein, and therapies targeting their signaling (i.e., anti-TNF therapies) have been proven to achieve good results. However, the phenomenon of rapid improvement in the patients’ subjective feeling after the start of TNFα neutralization remained confusing, because it was observed long before any detectable signs of inflammation decline. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), enabling visualization of brain activity upon peripheral immune stimulation with anti-TNF, has helped to clarify this discrepancy. Moreover, fMRI appeared to work as a reliable tool for predicting prospective success of anti-TNF therapy, which is valuable considering the side effects of the drugs and the high therapy costs. This review, which is mainly guided by neuroimaging studies of the brain, summarizes the state-of-the-art knowledge about communication between the immune system and the brain and its impact on subjective well-being, addresses in more detail the outcome of the abovementioned anti-TNF fMRI studies (rapid response to TNFα blockade within the brain pain matrix and differences in brain activation patterns between prospective therapy responders and nonresponders), and discusses possible mechanisms for the latter phenomena and the predictive power of fMRI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Sergeeva
- Institut for Experimental Pharmacology, Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Fahrstrasse 17, 91054, Erlangen, Germany.
| | - Jürgen Rech
- Department of Internal Medicine III, Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Ulmenweg 18, 91054, Erlangen, Germany.
| | - Georg Schett
- Department of Internal Medicine III, Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Ulmenweg 18, 91054, Erlangen, Germany.
| | - Andreas Hess
- Institut for Experimental Pharmacology, Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Fahrstrasse 17, 91054, Erlangen, Germany.
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