ReviewLife (Basel, Switzerland)2023
Effect of Different Physical Therapy Interventions on Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Levels in Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain Patients: A Systematic Review.
Review in Life (Basel, Switzerland), 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.
- Blood biomarkers of inflammation and brain-derived neurotrophic factor can not be used to assess the effectiveness of collagen mesotherapy in chronic cervical myofascial pain syndrome. A pilot single-blind randomized study.Rheumatology international · 2026Trial
- Article
- Effectiveness of Physiotherapy Interventions on Executive Function in Patients with Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review.Neurology international · 2026Review
- Chronic Pain and Cognitive Dysfunction: Clinical Implement, Mechanism, and Therapeutic Strategy.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2026Review
- Pain Neuroscience Education Reduces Pain and Improves Psychological Variables but Does Not Induce Plastic Changes Measured by Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF): A Randomized Double-Blind Clinical Trial.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Impact of electrical muscle stimulation-induced muscle contractions on endogenous pain modulatory system: a quantitative sensory testing evaluation.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2024Article
- Pharmacology, medical uses, and clinical translational challenges of Saikosaponin A: A review.Heliyon · 2024Review
- The Role of the Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in Chronic Pain: Links to Central Sensitization and Neuroinflammation.Biomolecules · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThe main objectives of this review were, firstly, to study the effect of different physiotherapy interventions on BDNF levels, and, secondly, to analyze the influence of physiotherapy on pain levels to subsequently draw conclusions about its possible relationship with BDNF.
backgroundBased on the theory that neurotrophic factors such as BDNF play a fundamental role in the initiation and/or maintenance of hyperexcitability of central neurons in pain, it was hypothesized that the levels of this neurotrophic factor may be modified by the application of therapeutic interventions, favoring a reduction in pain intensity.
methodsA literature search of multiple electronic databases (Pubmed, PsycINFO, Medline (Ebsco), Scopus, WOS, Embase) was conducted to identify randomized control trials (RCTs) published without language restrictions up to and including March 2022. The search strategy was based on the combination of medical terms (Mesh) and keywords relating to the following concepts: "pain", "chronic pain", "brain derived neurotrophic factor", "BDNF", "physiotherapy", and "physical therapy". A total of seven papers were included.
resultsThere were two studies that showed statistically significant differences in pain intensity reduction and an increase in the BDNF levels that used therapies such as rTMS and EIMS in patients with chronic myofascial pain. However, the same conclusions cannot be drawn for the other physical therapies applied.
conclusionsrTMS and EIMS interventions achieved greater short-term reductions in pain intensity and increased BDNF over other types of interventions in chronic myofascial pain patients, as demonstrated by a moderate amount of evidence. In contrast, other types of physical therapy (PT) interventions did not appear to be more effective in decreasing pain intensity and increasing BDNF levels than placebo PT or minimal intervention, as a low amount of evidence was found.
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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.