Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41174704›Full record

ArticleAdvances in rheumatology (London, England)2025

Neuropathic pain and central sensitization in patients with rheumatoid arthritis attending a tertiary hospital.

Maria Nathalia Gabriela Rocha Pontes de Oliveira, Débora de Jesus Sena, Ana Karla Guedes de Melo, Danielle C Soares Egypto, Luís Fábio Barbosa Botelho, Alessandra de Sousa Braz

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Advances in rheumatology (London, England), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Maria Nathalia Gabriela Rocha Pontes de OliveiraCenter for Medical Sciences, Federal University of Paraiba, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil.ORCID 0009-0002-5967-4862
Débora de Jesus SenaCenter for Medical Sciences, Federal University of Paraiba, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil.ORCID 0009-0007-8441-2756
Ana Karla Guedes de MeloLauro Wanderley University Hospital, Federal University of Paraiba, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-4809-9965
Danielle C Soares EgyptoCenter for Medical Sciences, Federal University of Paraiba, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-8236-024X
Luís Fábio Barbosa BotelhoCenter for Medical Sciences, Federal University of Paraiba, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0001-6737-1760
Alessandra de Sousa BrazCenter for Medical Sciences, Federal University of Paraiba, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil. alessabraz@gmail.com.ORCID 0000-0002-7515-3947

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIn rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the persistence of pain despite adequate inflammatory control may indicate the involvement of nociplastic and/or neuropathic pain (NP).

objectiveTo investigate the presence of central sensitization (CS) and/or NP in patients with RA.

methodsThis descriptive, cross-sectional study used convenience sampling and included adult patients (≥ 18 years) with RA diagnosed according to the 2010 classification criteria of the American College of Rheumatology - ACR. The following instruments were applied: Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI), PainDETECT Questionnaire (PD-Q), and the 2010/2011 ACR criteria for fibromyalgia (FM), revised in 2016 (the latter applied only to patients with CSI ≥ 40). Descriptive and predictive analyses were conducted with a significance level of 5%.

resultsA total of 113 patients were included (mean age 54.3 years; 93.81% female; mean disease duration 12.11 years). CS was identified in 59.29% of patients; among them, 47.76% met FM criteria, while 52.24% did not. Among patients with CS, 53.73% reported severe pain (Numeric Rating Scale, NRS), and 44.78% had high disease activity (Clinical Disease Activity Index, CDAI). CSI was a significant predictor of both NRS and CDAI in univariate (p < 0.001) and multivariate analyses (p = 0.037 and p = 0.009, respectively). According to PD-Q, 17.70% of patients had probable NP, and PD-Q scores were predictive of CDAI, NRS, and CSI (p < 0.001). Among patients with CS, 26.87% also showed overlapping NP.

conclusionsA substantial proportion of RA patients presented with CS-related pain, even in the absence of FM, suggesting a mixed ("top-down and bottom-up") nociplastic pain profile. Both CS and NP were associated with higher pain levels and increased disease activity. This is the first Brazilian study to characterize the coexistence of CS-related pain (with or without FM) and NP in RA, offering relevant insights for the clinical management of chronic pain in this population. These findings reinforce that routine screening and assessment of CS and NP should be an integral and continuous component of RA management, preceding therapeutic adjustments and extending throughout follow-up.

Indexed as

Arthritis, RheumatoidCentral Nervous System SensitizationNeuralgiaAdultAgedCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleFibromyalgiaHumansMaleMiddle AgedPain MeasurementSurveys and QuestionnairesTertiary Care CentersCentral sensitizationFibromyalgiaNeuropathic painRheumatoid arthritis

Identifiers

PMID41174704
PMCPMC13488841

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.