SynthesisBMC musculoskeletal disorders2019
Inflammatory biomarkers in patients with sciatica: a systematic review.
Synthesis in BMC musculoskeletal disorders, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05601791 (Efficacy of Percutaneous Laser Disc Decompression Versus Epidural Steroid and Local Anesthetic Injection by Transforaminal Approach in the Treatment of Lumbar Radicular Pain), which is not on this map. Cited by 35 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.
The trial behind it
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.
Efficacy of Percutaneous Laser Disc Decompression Versus Epidural Steroid and Local Anesthetic Injection by Transforaminal Approach in the Treatment of Lumbar Radicular Pain
Who cites it
35 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 63 citations in OpenAlex.
- Altered blood-based biomarkers in carpal tunnel syndrome. A systematic review and meta-analysis.Musculoskeletal science & practice · 2026Pooled it
- Prognostic factors associated with outcome following an epidural steroid injection for disc-related sciatica: a systematic review and narrative synthesis.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2023Pooled it
- Differentiating Sciatica from Hip Osteoarthritis: Diagnostic Challenges and the Role of the Athena Sign.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Acupuncture and Moxibustion Therapy Attenuates Inflammation in CCI-Induced Sciatica by Inhibiting the NF-κB Pathway.Journal of pharmacopuncture · 2026Article
- Influence of ginger root extract supplementation on the microbiota-gut-brain axis in individuals with sciatica: Study protocol for a double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized trial.Clinical nutrition ESPEN · 2026Article
- Immunomodulatory Effects of Acupuncture on Inflammatory Markers in Patients with Musculoskeletal Pain: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Muscles (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Adjacent segment degeneration may predict significantly worse leg pain outcomes after lumbar discectomy.Skeletal radiology · 2026Article
- A SASP-related four-gene signature associated with intervertebral disc degeneration: integrated bioinformatics analysis and validation of pinocembrin as a therapeutic candidate.Molecular biology reports · 2026Article
- Neurophysiological, Radiological, and Molecular Biomarkers of Pain-Related Conditions: An Umbrella Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Associations of inflammatory biomarkers with clinical outcomes in degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis: A systematic review.Brain & spine · 2026Review
- Systemic inflammatory perturbations triggered by neuropathic pain in L5 compressed mouse and rat model.Journal of orthopaedic translation · 2026Article
- Identification of gene expression signatures associated with neuroinflammation in discogenic sciatica using machine learning and experimental validation.Frontiers in genetics · 2026Article
- Lumbar epidural steroid injections for lumbosacral radicular pain in patients with normal imaging: A propensity-matched study.Interventional pain medicine · 2025Article
- Evaluating the Effects of Exercise on Inflammation Markers in Musculoskeletal Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Article
- A Nomogram Model Integrating Inflammation Markers for Predicting the Risk of Recurrent Sciatica After Selective Nerve Root Blocks.Risk management and healthcare policy · 2025Article
- Article
- Systemic low-grade C-reactive protein is associated with proximal symptom spread in carpal tunnel syndrome.Pain reports · 2024Article
- Causal association between circulating inflammatory markers and sciatica development: a Mendelian randomization study.Frontiers in neurology · 2024Article
- Altered serum cytokines in patients with symptomatic disk herniation and depressive symptoms.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThis systematic review focusses on inflammation as an underlying pathogenic mechanism in sciatica. We addressed two questions in particular: (1) what inflammatory biomarkers have been identified in patients with sciatica in the literature so far? 2) is there an association between the level of inflammatory activity and clinical symptoms?
methodsThe search was conducted up to December 19th 2018 in MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL and Web of Science. The study selection criteria: (1) observational cohort studies, cross-sectional studies and randomized clinical trials (RCT), (2) adult population (≥ 18 years) population with sciatica, (3) concentrations of inflammatory biomarkers measured in serum, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) or biopsies, and (4) evaluation of clinically relevant outcome measures (pain or functional status). Three reviewers independently selected studies and extracted data regarding the study characteristics and the outcomes. Risk of Bias was evaluated using an adjusted version of the Quality in Prognosis Studies (QUIPS) tool.
resultsIn total 16 articles fulfilled the criteria for inclusion: 7 cross sectional observational studies and 9 prospective cohort studies that included a total of 1212 patients. With regard to question 1) the following markers were identified: interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-17, IL-21, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), phospholipase A2, high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), C-X-C motif chemokine 5 (CXCM5), CX3CL1, CCL2, epidermal growth factor (EGF), and monocyte chemotactic protein 4 (MCP-4). With regard to question 2) several positive correlations were found in longitudinal studies: a strong positive correlation between inflammatory mediators or byproducts and pain (measured by visual analogue scale, VAS) was found for IL-21 in two studies (r > 0,8), and moderate positive correlations for TNF-a in both serum (r = 0,629) and biopsy (r = 0.65); severe pain (VAS > 4) is associated with increased hsCRP levels among patients with sciatica (adjusted OR = 3.4 (95% CI, 1.1 to 10).
conclusionIn this systematic review there was considerable heterogeneity in the type of biomarkers and in the clinical measurements in the included studies. Taking into account the overall risk of bias of the included studies there is insufficient evidence to draw firm conclusions regarding the relationship between inflammation and clinical symptoms in patients with sciatica.
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Registered trials
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 OpenQuestion graph.