Nerves in the News
Nerves are critical to our health and quality of life. The news will often report on articles that impact nerves even if they do not always focus on nerves directly. Because of this, we have started our Nerves in the News feature. This section will highlight news stories that relate to nerve health to improve your nerve knowledge and life.
Dementia and Chronic Pain
Original News Story: Dementia risk rises if you live with chronic pain, study says
Research article cited in the news story: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2215192120
Research article cited in the news story: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2215192120
Many individuals can relate to chronic pain and living with chronic pain is even more difficult. This CNN article highlights that chronic pain, regardless of the cause, results in changes in the brain that are similar to dementia. This study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science earlier this year links chronic pain with increased risk of dementia (www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2215192120).
What is dementia?
Dementia is general term for the impaired ability to remember, think, or make decisions that interferes with doing everyday activities . The researches in this study used a MRI brain scan and a test of performing 11 tasks. They followed over 19000 people, between age 40 to 69, living in the UK.
Based on the results of this study, chronic pain cause changes in the brain similar to dementia.
The amount or degree of decline in brain function was dependent on how much chronic pain. If a person had two areas of chronic pain, they aged two years worth of brain function. That does not seem like much, but when they had 5 areas of pain, their brain scan showed that they had 8 years of brain loss. It is did not make any difference what type of pain or the location in the study.
Dementia is a can be caused by many factors such as Alzheimer’s disease which is thought to account for 60-70% of dementia cases (www.alz.org, www.dementiasociety.org). It effects wide range of individuals at different ages. Dementia causes a decrease in cognitive ability such as planning as well as loss of memory. We have all seen individuals with dementia withdraw from social situations and the public.
While this specific study could not identify how chronic pain increased the likelihood of dementia, chronic pain can cause a loss of sleep, limit exercise, and create inflammation in the brain and nerves, which result in loss of brain matter. Dr. Isaacson, a nerve specialist from the Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases of Florida, highlighted that pain signals immune cells to cause inflammation in brain cells, which may lead to changes in brain connectivity and function.
Patients dealing with chronic pain, especially if the pain in from another nerve problem, should find and consult a nerve specialist (www.globalnervefoundation.org/gnf-directory). It may be possible to treat their chronic pain to not only improve the quality of life but to also reduce the likelihood of developing dementia later in life.
Dementia is a can be caused by many factors such as Alzheimer’s disease which is thought to account for 60-70% of dementia cases (www.alz.org, www.dementiasociety.org). It effects wide range of individuals at different ages. Dementia causes a decrease in cognitive ability such as planning as well as loss of memory. We have all seen individuals with dementia withdraw from social situations and the public.
While this specific study could not identify how chronic pain increased the likelihood of dementia, chronic pain can cause a loss of sleep, limit exercise, and create inflammation in the brain and nerves, which result in loss of brain matter. Dr. Isaacson, a nerve specialist from the Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases of Florida, highlighted that pain signals immune cells to cause inflammation in brain cells, which may lead to changes in brain connectivity and function.
Patients dealing with chronic pain, especially if the pain in from another nerve problem, should find and consult a nerve specialist (www.globalnervefoundation.org/gnf-directory). It may be possible to treat their chronic pain to not only improve the quality of life but to also reduce the likelihood of developing dementia later in life.
Authored by:
Harry Hoyen, MD
Orthopaedic and Nerve Surgeon
Chair, GNF Awareness Committee
Orthopaedic and Nerve Surgeon
Chair, GNF Awareness Committee