ArticlePain reports
Brain gamma-aminobutyric acid, but not glutamine and glutamate levels are lower in older adults with chronic musculoskeletal pain: considerations by sex and brain location.
Article in Pain reports. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.
- Central Sensitization and Nociplastic Pain: Shared Mechanisms in Fibromyalgia, Osteoarthritis, and Inflammatory Arthritis.Journal of pain research · 2026Review
- Elevated posterior insula glutamate in patients with sickle cell disease.The journal of pain · 2025Article
- Preliminary Characterization of Age and Chronic Low Back Pain Effects on Multimodal Pain Sensitivity: A Comparison Study in Older Adults with and Without Chronic Low Back Pain.The journal of pain · 2024Article
- Genetically Regulated Gene Expression in the Brain Associated With Chronic Pain: Relationships With Clinical Traits and Potential for Drug Repurposing.Biological psychiatry · 2024Article
- Visual surround suppression at the neural and perceptual levels.Cognitive neurodynamics · 2024Review
- Differential DNA methylation profiles of Alzheimer's disease-related genomic pathways in the blood of cognitively-intact individuals with and without high impact chronic pain.Journal of Alzheimer's disease reports · 2024Article
- Microglia polarization in nociplastic pain: mechanisms and perspectives.Inflammopharmacology · 2023Review
- Protocol for a pilot and feasibility randomized-controlled trial of four weeks of oral γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) intake and its effect on pain and sleep in middle-to-older aged adults.Contemporary clinical trials communications · 2023Article
- Relationship between brain metabolites and chronic pain mechanisms in knee osteoarthritis pre- and post-total knee replacement.Neurobiology of pain (Cambridge, Mass.)Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
INTRODUCTION AND
objectivesGABAergic and glutamatergic neurotransmitter systems are central to the pathophysiology of chronic pain and are equally affected by aging processes. We measured levels of frontal gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and the combined resonance of glutamate and glutamine (Glx) in vivo using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (
methodsYounger (18-24, n = 24) and older (60-94, n = 41) individuals part of a larger study (Neuromodulatory Examination of Pain and Mobility Across the Lifespan [NEPAL]) underwent questionnaires, quantitative sensory testing, and
resultsOlder participants had significantly lower sensorimotor, but not prefrontal, GABA and Glx levels, compared with younger controls (
conclusionEvaluation of both the neuroinhibitory and neuroexcitatory mechanisms provide promising potential for improving both our understanding of the mechanisms of chronic pain in aging and opportunities for effective, individualized treatments.
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What OpenQuestion holds
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.