The Relationship Between Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Scores and Sensory Testing in Axial Spondyloarthritis

NCT ID: NCT05021783

Last Updated: 2021-08-26

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Total Enrollment

24 participants

Study Classification

OBSERVATIONAL

Study Start Date

2021-02-01

Study Completion Date

2021-08-15

Brief Summary

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Axial spondyloarthritis is one of the most common rheumatic diseases and chronic pain and morning stiffness are the main complaints of these patients. Central sensitization is defined as increased response to normal or sub-threshold stimuli of central nervous system and its close relationship with many rheumatological diseases has been demonstrated in several studies. There is no method for the diagnosis of central sensitization is accepted as a gold standard. The clinical scales and quantitative sensory testing (QST) widely is used for this purpose widely. The most commonly used QST types include pressure pain threshold (PPT), temporal summation (TS) and conditioned pain modulation (CPM). The well-known scale used for the evaluation of central sensitization is the Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI) , developed in 2011 for detect central sensitization in chronic pain patients. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the relationship between QST and CSI and sacroiliac MRI changes.

Detailed Description

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Central sensitization is hypersensitivity and increased response to normal/painless stimuli due to dysfunction in endogenous pain pathways. Quantitative sensory testing is frequently used to detect pain sensitization, and pressure pain threshold (PPT) and temporal summation (TS) are often preferred for this purpose. Recently, in addition to these methods, conditional pain modulation (CPM), in which descending pain pathways are tested, is also preferred. With PPT and TS measurement, local/generalized sensitivity increase can be detected in patients who develop pain sensitization. Observation of increased nociceptor response and decrease in pressure pain threshold in the tissue damaged area is interpreted in favor of peripheral sensitization, while obtaining a similar response in adjacent or distant areas is defined as generalized increased sensitivity. Although it is known that local hyperalgesia is one of the main findings of inflammation, studies that have shown this quantitatively are limited. Inflammatory lesions are observed in patients with axial spondyloarthritis, especially in the active stages of the disease, and the relationship of these lesions with PPT, TS and CPM values and pain sensitization is unknown. Therefore, in this study, it was planned to investigate the relationship of inflammatory and structural lesions detected by sacroiliac MRI with regional PPT,TS, CPM and pain sensitization in patients diagnosed with axSpA.

Conditions

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Central Sensitisation Axial Spondyloarthritis Inflammation

Study Design

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Observational Model Type

CASE_ONLY

Study Time Perspective

CROSS_SECTIONAL

Study Groups

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Patients

Patients with Axial SpondyloArthritis

Pressure pain threshold

Intervention Type DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

The sacroiliac PPT scores will be obtained bilaterally from four measurement points; the first point is located 1 cm medially and caudally from spina iliaca posterior superior (SIPS) and 3 more laterally, medially and cranially.The left trapezius muscle will be used to evaluate distant control point .The 1 cm2 algometer probe will be placed vertically in the each selected point and pressure will be increased with 0.1 kg/sc until the participant reporting pressure became painful. The pressure value at which the pain is first felt will be accepted as the PPT of that point.

Central Sensitization Inventory

Intervention Type DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Standardized questionnaire to determine the level of central sensitization

Spondyloarthritis Research Consortium of Canada scoring system

Intervention Type OTHER

SPARCC scoring consists of two subcomponents to detect sacroiliitis activation and structural damage. In the short tau inversion recovery (STIR) sequence, 6 consecutive coronal sections will be examined and the signal increase will be scored as 0 = normal signal and 1 = increased signal. In this way, the maximum score can be 12 in a single coronal section. Evaluations Total maximum score of 72 in 6 consecutive coronal sections. In structural scoring, similar to sacroiliitis scoring, the SI joint is divided into four quadrants to evaluate whether there is fatty change, erosion, backfill and ankylosis. Each lesion is scored as 0=absent or 1=present. In this way, fatty change and erosion can be scored between 0-40 and backfill and ankylosis can be scored between 0-20 in 5 consecutive sections in total scoring.

Temporal Summation

Intervention Type DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

TS will be evaluated over the trapezius muscle and sacroiliac joints with manuel algometer. In the evaluation of TS, a pressure as much the PPT value of each point will be applied with pain pressure algometer ten times with a 1-second interstimulus interval. Patients will be asked to rate their pain using on a 0 to 10 visual analogue scale (VAS) at 0, 5, and 10 seconds. TS will be calculated by subtracting the rating at 0 seconds from the rating at 10 seconds. The point that is located 1 cm medially and caudally from SIPS was used for SI joint TS measurement on both sides.

Conditioned pain modulation

Intervention Type DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

First stimulus will be applied to trapezius with the pressure that induced a pain intensity of 4 point on a 10 point VAS as called a test stimulus. After that the right hand of the patient will be immersed in 7 Celsius water for 20 seconds to create a conditioning stimulus. Second test stimulus with the same intensity of first one will be applied to trapezius after the conditioning stimulus and patients will be asked to rate their pain. If the patients cannot hold their hand in the water for 20 seconds, the test stimulus will be applied immediately after the patients removed their hands out of water. The ratio between the first and second VAS values multiplied by 100 will be defined as CPM score

Interventions

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Pressure pain threshold

The sacroiliac PPT scores will be obtained bilaterally from four measurement points; the first point is located 1 cm medially and caudally from spina iliaca posterior superior (SIPS) and 3 more laterally, medially and cranially.The left trapezius muscle will be used to evaluate distant control point .The 1 cm2 algometer probe will be placed vertically in the each selected point and pressure will be increased with 0.1 kg/sc until the participant reporting pressure became painful. The pressure value at which the pain is first felt will be accepted as the PPT of that point.

Intervention Type DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Central Sensitization Inventory

Standardized questionnaire to determine the level of central sensitization

Intervention Type DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Spondyloarthritis Research Consortium of Canada scoring system

SPARCC scoring consists of two subcomponents to detect sacroiliitis activation and structural damage. In the short tau inversion recovery (STIR) sequence, 6 consecutive coronal sections will be examined and the signal increase will be scored as 0 = normal signal and 1 = increased signal. In this way, the maximum score can be 12 in a single coronal section. Evaluations Total maximum score of 72 in 6 consecutive coronal sections. In structural scoring, similar to sacroiliitis scoring, the SI joint is divided into four quadrants to evaluate whether there is fatty change, erosion, backfill and ankylosis. Each lesion is scored as 0=absent or 1=present. In this way, fatty change and erosion can be scored between 0-40 and backfill and ankylosis can be scored between 0-20 in 5 consecutive sections in total scoring.

Intervention Type OTHER

Temporal Summation

TS will be evaluated over the trapezius muscle and sacroiliac joints with manuel algometer. In the evaluation of TS, a pressure as much the PPT value of each point will be applied with pain pressure algometer ten times with a 1-second interstimulus interval. Patients will be asked to rate their pain using on a 0 to 10 visual analogue scale (VAS) at 0, 5, and 10 seconds. TS will be calculated by subtracting the rating at 0 seconds from the rating at 10 seconds. The point that is located 1 cm medially and caudally from SIPS was used for SI joint TS measurement on both sides.

Intervention Type DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Conditioned pain modulation

First stimulus will be applied to trapezius with the pressure that induced a pain intensity of 4 point on a 10 point VAS as called a test stimulus. After that the right hand of the patient will be immersed in 7 Celsius water for 20 seconds to create a conditioning stimulus. Second test stimulus with the same intensity of first one will be applied to trapezius after the conditioning stimulus and patients will be asked to rate their pain. If the patients cannot hold their hand in the water for 20 seconds, the test stimulus will be applied immediately after the patients removed their hands out of water. The ratio between the first and second VAS values multiplied by 100 will be defined as CPM score

Intervention Type DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

Other Intervention Names

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PPT CSI SPARCC TS CPM

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Diagnosed with axSpA according to the Assessment of SpondyloArthritis International Society (ASAS) criteria
* Aged between 18-65 years

Exclusion Criteria

* Had an other rheumatic diseases, peripheral vascular disease, peripheral neuropathy and spine disease (e.g., symptomatic herniated disc, spinal stenosis),
* Using centrally acting pain medications (e.g., pregabaline, duloxetine, opioids) or glucocorticoids (\>10 mg prednisone or its equivalent) within 3 months of study enrollment
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

65 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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Marmara University

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Responsibility Role SPONSOR

Locations

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Marmara University

Istanbul, , Turkey (Türkiye)

Site Status

Countries

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Turkey (Türkiye)

References

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Kiltz U, Baraliakos X, Regel A, Buhring B, Braun J. Causes of pain in patients with axial spondyloarthritis. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2017 Sep-Oct;35 Suppl 107(5):102-107. Epub 2017 Sep 29.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 28967358 (View on PubMed)

Classification of chronic pain. Descriptions of chronic pain syndromes and definitions of pain terms. Prepared by the International Association for the Study of Pain, Subcommittee on Taxonomy. Pain Suppl. 1986;3:S1-226. No abstract available.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 3461421 (View on PubMed)

Rolke R, Baron R, Maier C, Tolle TR, Treede -DR, Beyer A, Binder A, Birbaumer N, Birklein F, Botefur IC, Braune S, Flor H, Huge V, Klug R, Landwehrmeyer GB, Magerl W, Maihofner C, Rolko C, Schaub C, Scherens A, Sprenger T, Valet M, Wasserka B. Quantitative sensory testing in the German Research Network on Neuropathic Pain (DFNS): standardized protocol and reference values. Pain. 2006 Aug;123(3):231-243. doi: 10.1016/j.pain.2006.01.041. Epub 2006 May 11.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 16697110 (View on PubMed)

Maksymowych WP, Inman RD, Salonen D, Dhillon SS, Williams M, Stone M, Conner-Spady B, Palsat J, Lambert RG. Spondyloarthritis research Consortium of Canada magnetic resonance imaging index for assessment of sacroiliac joint inflammation in ankylosing spondylitis. Arthritis Rheum. 2005 Oct 15;53(5):703-9. doi: 10.1002/art.21445.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 16208659 (View on PubMed)

Maksymowych WP, Wichuk S, Chiowchanwisawakit P, Lambert RG, Pedersen SJ. Development and preliminary validation of the spondyloarthritis research consortium of Canada magnetic resonance imaging sacroiliac joint structural score. J Rheumatol. 2015 Jan;42(1):79-86. doi: 10.3899/jrheum.140519. Epub 2014 Oct 15.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 25320219 (View on PubMed)

Mayer TG, Neblett R, Cohen H, Howard KJ, Choi YH, Williams MJ, Perez Y, Gatchel RJ. The development and psychometric validation of the central sensitization inventory. Pain Pract. 2012 Apr;12(4):276-85. doi: 10.1111/j.1533-2500.2011.00493.x. Epub 2011 Sep 27.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 21951710 (View on PubMed)

van Leeuwen RJ, Szadek K, de Vet H, Zuurmond W, Perez R. Pain Pressure Threshold in the Region of the Sacroiliac Joint in Patients Diagnosed with Sacroiliac Joint Pain. Pain Physician. 2016 Mar;19(3):147-54.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 27008288 (View on PubMed)

de Goeij M, van Eijk LT, Vanelderen P, Wilder-Smith OH, Vissers KC, van der Hoeven JG, Kox M, Scheffer GJ, Pickkers P. Systemic inflammation decreases pain threshold in humans in vivo. PLoS One. 2013 Dec 17;8(12):e84159. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0084159. eCollection 2013.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 24358337 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

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09.2021.64

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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