Poster No:
1732
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Leila Nategh1, Natalia Egorova-Brumley2
Institutions:
1The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 2University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria
First Author:
Co-Author:
Introduction:
Osteoarthritis (OA), a chronic and prevalent joint disorder, that causes pain, stiffness, and joint damage, leading to disability worldwide. Among the various joints affected, hip OA is a significant contributor to mobility challenges and reduced quality of life. Emerging evidence suggests that OA impacts not only peripheral joints but also the central nervous system. Chronic pain linked to OA induces alterations in brain structure and function, which are thought to influence cognitive processes and pain modulation mechanisms. Despite substantial advances in understanding knee OA's neurobiological effects, research on hip OA remains limited, underscoring the need for joint-specific investigations. This study aims to bridge this gap by examining cortical thickness and volumes alterations associated with hip OA and their relationship to pain and cognitive functions.
Methods:
Thirty-four patients diagnosed with hip OA and forty healthy controls without OA were recruited for this study. Structural brain imaging data were collected using high-resolution MRI. Linear regression models were employed to assess differences in cortical thickness and volumes between groups while controlling for age, gender, education, and estimated total intracranial volume (eTIV). Key brain regions analyzed included the insula, middle temporal gyrus, inferior temporal gyrus, superior frontal gyrus, and medial orbitofrontal cortex, which are implicated in pain processing, sensory integration, and cognitive functions. Pain severity and its impact on daily activities were evaluated using the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index (WOMAC), which assesses three subscales: pain, stiffness, and physical function.
Results:
Significant cortical thinning was observed in the left middle temporal gyrus of hip OA participants compared to controls. The middle temporal gyrus, a region critical for semantic processing, memory, and sensory integration, displayed marked structural alterations potentially reflecting chronic pain's neural impact. Other regions analyzed did not show significant differences after adjusting for covariates. These findings align with previous research demonstrating cortical changes associated with chronic pain conditions, including knee OA and other chronic pain syndromes.
Conclusions:
Discussion:
The observed cortical thinning in the left middle temporal gyrus highlights the potential neural consequences of chronic pain in hip OA. These results align with findings from other studies on knee OA, which similarly reported cortical thinning in brain regions associated with pain and cognitive functions. The shared neural mechanisms across joints affected by OA may indicate a generalized impact of chronic pain on brain structure. However, the specificity of certain alterations in hip OA underscores the importance of joint-specific research. This study provides a critical first step in understanding how hip OA uniquely affects brain morphology and its implications for cognitive functions and pain modulation.
Conclusions:
This research contributes to the growing evidence of central nervous system involvement in OA, emphasizing the importance of recognizing OA as a systemic condition with neurobiological implications. The findings suggest that chronic pain in hip OA is associated with specific brain structural changes, with potential consequences for cognitive processes. This underscores the necessity of considering brain health in OA management and the potential for targeted interventions to mitigate neural degeneration and improve patient outcomes. Importantly, these results highlight OA's role as a modifiable risk factor for dementia, offering new avenues for prevention and treatment strategies in aging populations. Future studies should expand on this work by investigating functional connectivity and longitudinal changes to further elucidate the relationship between chronic pain, brain structure, and cognitive decline in OA.
Neuroanatomy, Physiology, Metabolism and Neurotransmission:
Cortical Anatomy and Brain Mapping 1
Novel Imaging Acquisition Methods:
Anatomical MRI
Perception, Attention and Motor Behavior:
Perception: Pain and Visceral 2
Keywords:
MRI
Pain
Other - Osteoarthritis, Chronic Pain, Cortical Thinning, Neurobiological Mechanisms of Pain
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
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Please indicate below if your study was a "resting state" or "task-activation” study.
Other
Healthy subjects only or patients (note that patient studies may also involve healthy subjects):
Patients
Was this research conducted in the United States?
No
Were any human subjects research approved by the relevant Institutional Review Board or ethics panel?
NOTE: Any human subjects studies without IRB approval will be automatically rejected.
Yes
Were any animal research approved by the relevant IACUC or other animal research panel?
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Not applicable
Please indicate which methods were used in your research:
Structural MRI
For human MRI, what field strength scanner do you use?
1T
Which processing packages did you use for your study?
Free Surfer
Provide references using APA citation style.
Hall, M., Dobson, F., Klyne, D. M., Zheng, C. J., Lopes Lima, Y., & Egorova-Brumley, N. (2023). Neurobiology of osteoarthritis: A systematic review and activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis. Scientific Reports, 13, 12442. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39245-9
Fauchon, C., Binvignat, M., Berenbaum, F., Conaghan, P. G., Peyron, R., Sellam, J., & Schaible, H. G. (2024). Brain functional imaging contributions in osteoarthritis-related pain: A viewpoint. Perspective on pain and brain disturbances in osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage Open, 100554. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocarto.2024.100554
Salazar-Méndez, J., Cuyul-Vásquez, I., Viscay-Sanhueza, N., Morales-Verdugo, J., Mendez-Rebolledo, G., Ponce-Fuentes, F., & Lluch-Girbés, E. (2023). Structural and functional brain changes in people with knee osteoarthritis: A scoping review. PeerJ, 11, e16003. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.16003
Guo, R., Ou, Y.-N., Ma, L.-Y., Tang, L., Yang, L., Feng, J.-F., Cheng, W., Tan, L., & Yu, J.-T. (2024). Osteoarthritis, osteoarthritis treatment and risk of incident dementia: A prospective cohort study based on UK Biobank. Age and Ageing, 53, afae167. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2021.664443
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