No evidence of association between either Modic change or disc degeneration and five circulating inflammatory proteins

© 2024 The Authors. JOR Spine published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Orthopaedic Research Society..

Introduction: Intervertebral disc degeneration and Modic change are the main spinal structural changes associated with chronic low back pain (LBP). Both conditions are thought to manifest local inflammation and if inflammatory proteins translocate to the blood circulation could be detected systemically. The work here assesses whether the presence of disc degeneration is associated with detectable blood level changes of five inflammatory markers and whether chronic LBP is associated with these changes.

Materials and Methods: Two hundred and forty TwinsUK cohort participants with both MRI disc degeneration grade and Modic change extent, and IL-6, IL-8, IL-8 TNF, and CX3CL1 protein blood concentration measurements were included in this work. Linear mixed effects models were used to test the association of blood cytokine concentration with disc degeneration score and Modic change volumetric score. Association of chronic LBP status from questionnaires with disc degeneration, Modic change, and cytokine blood concentration was also tested.

Results: No statistically significant association between disc degeneration or Modic change with cytokine blood concentration was found. Instead, regression analysis pointed strong association between cytokine blood concentration with body mass index for IL-6 and with age for IL-6 and TNF. Mild association was found between IL-8 blood concentration and body mass index. Additionally, LBP status was associated with Modic change volumetric score but not associated with any cytokine concentration.

Conclusions: We found no evidence that Modic change and disc degeneration are able to produce changes in tested blood cytokine concentration. However, age and body mass index have strong influence on cytokine concentration and both are associated with the conditions studied which may confound associations found in the literature. It is then unlikely that cytokines produced in the disc or vertebral bone marrow induce chronic LBP.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2024

Erschienen:

2024

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:7

Enthalten in:

JOR spine - 7(2024), 1 vom: 27. März, Seite e1323

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Compte, Roger [VerfasserIn]
Freidin, Maxim B [VerfasserIn]
Granville Smith, Isabelle [VerfasserIn]
Le Maitre, Christine L [VerfasserIn]
Vaitkute, Dovile [VerfasserIn]
Nessa, Ayrun [VerfasserIn]
Lachance, Genevieve [VerfasserIn]
Williams, Frances M K [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

Aging
Degeneration
Inflammation
Journal Article
Pain

Anmerkungen:

Date Revised 27.03.2024

published: Electronic-eCollection

Citation Status PubMed-not-MEDLINE

doi:

10.1002/jsp2.1323

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM370188861