Alexander Niculescu, MD, PhD
A breakthrough test developed by Indiana University School of Medicine researchers to measure pain in patients could help stem the tide of the opioid crisis in Indiana, and throughout the rest of the nation.
A study led by psychiatry professor Alexander Niculescu, MD, PhD and published this week in the high impact Nature journal Molecular Psychiatry tracked hundreds of participants at the Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center in Indianapolis to identify biomarkers in the blood that can help objectively determine how severe a patient’s pain is. The blood test, the first of its kind, would allow physicians far more accuracy in treating pain—as well as a better long-term look at the patient’s medical future.
“We have developed a prototype for a blood test that can objectively tell doctors if the patient is in pain, and how severe that pain is. It’s very important to have an objective measure of pain, as pain is a subjective sensation. Until now we have had to rely on patients self-reporting or the clinical impression the doctor has,” said Niculescu, who worked with other Department of Psychiatry researchers on the study. “When we started this work it was a farfetched idea. But the idea was to find a way to treat and prescribe things more appropriately to people who are in pain.”
During the study, researchers looked at biomarkers found in the blood—in this case molecules that reflect disease severity. Much like as glucose serves as a biomarker to diabetes, these biomarkers allow doctors to assess the severity of the pain the patient is experiencing, and provide treatment in an objective, quantifiable manner. With an opioid epidemic raging throughout the state and beyond, Niculescu said never has there been a more important time to administer drugs to patients responsibly.
“The opioid epidemic occurred because addictive medications were overprescribed due to the fact that there was no objective measure whether someone was in pain, or how severe their pain was,” Niculescu said. “Before, doctors weren’t being taught good alternatives. The thought was that this person says they are in pain, let’s prescribe it. Now people are seeing that this created a huge problem. We need alternatives to opioids, and we need to treat people in a precise fashion. This test we’ve developed allows for that.”
In addition to providing an objective measure of pain, Niculescu’s blood test helps physicians match the biomarkers in the patient’s blood with potential treatment options. Like a scene out of CSI, researchers utilize a prescription database—similar to fingerprint databases employed by the FBI—to match the pain biomarkers with profiles of drugs and natural compounds cataloged in the database.
“The biomarker is like a fingerprint, and we match it against this database and see which compound would normalize the signature,” said Niculescu, adding that often the best treatment identified is a non-opioid drug or compound. “We found some compounds that have been used for decades to treat other things pair the best with the biomarkers. We have been able to match biomarkers with existing medications, or natural compounds, which would reduce or eliminate the need to use the opioids.”
In keeping with the IU Grand Challenge Precision Health Initiative launched in June 2016, this study opens the door to precision medicine for pain. By treating and prescribing medicine more appropriately to the individual person, this prototype may help alleviate the dilemmas that have contributed to the current opioid epidemic.
“In any field, the goal is to match the patient to the right drug, which hopefully does a lot of good and very little harm,” Niculescu said. “But through precision health, by having lots of options geared toward the needs of specific patients, you prevent larger problems, like the opioid epidemic, from occurring.”
Additionally, study experts discovered biomarkers that not only match with non-addictive drugs that can treat pain, but can also help predict when someone might experience pain in the future—helping to determine if a patient is exhibiting chronic, long-term pain which might result in future emergency room visits.
“Through precision medicine you’re giving the patient treatment that is tailored directly to them and their needs,” Niculescu said. “We wanted first to find some markers for pain that are universal, and we were able to. We know, however, based on our data that there are some markers that work better for men, some that work better for women. It could be that there are some markers that work better for headaches, some markers that work better for fibromyalgia and so on. That is where we hope to go with future larger studies.”
The study was supported by an NIH Director’s New Innovator Award and a VA Merit Award. Moving forward, Niculescu’s group looks to secure more funding through grants or outside philanthropy to continue and accelerate these studies—with the hopes of personalizing the approach even more and moving toward a clinical application. A self-described longshot at the start, Niculescu said that the work his group has done could have a major impact on how doctors around the world treat pain in the future.
“It’s been a goal of many researchers and a dream to find biomarkers for pain,” Niculescu said. “We have come out of left field with an approach that had worked well in psychiatry for suicide and depression in previous studies. We applied it to pain, and we were successful. I give a lot of credit for that to my team at IU School of Medicine and the Indianapolis VA, as well as the excellent environment and support we have.”
Learn more: IU School of Medicine makes breakthrough toward developing blood test for pain
The Latest on: Pain
via Google News
The Latest on: Pain
- Delivery drivers feeling pain at the pump, paying out of pocket for gason May 11, 2022 at 6:02 pm
No one is happy when they step up to the pump and delivery drivers are having a tough time. Most of them have to absorb the impact of the gas prices with their own money. For companies like Café ...
- Surprise findings suggest anti-inflammatories increase chronic pain riskon May 11, 2022 at 5:59 pm
A new study led by researchers at McGill University challenges current notions of how acute pain is treated. The findings suggest treating some forms of acute pain with anti-inflammatory drugs may ...
- US inflation dips from 4-decade high but still causing painon May 11, 2022 at 5:26 pm
Still, Wednesday’s report contained some cautionary signs that inflation may be becoming more entrenched. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, so-called core price ...
- Emily Blunt to Star in David Yates Criminal Conspiracy Pic ‘Pain Hustlers’on May 11, 2022 at 5:10 pm
Emily Blunt is set to star in Pain Hustlers from director David Yates. The film is written by Wells Tower (The True American) and tells the story of a high school dropout who lands a job with a ...
- Emily Blunt To Star in ‘Pain Hustlers’ Directed By David Yates-Cannes Marketon May 11, 2022 at 4:30 pm
Another hot project is hitting the Cannes market as Emily Blunt is attached to star Pain Hustlers with David Yates directing. Wells Tower penned the script with Lawrence Grey producing through his ...
- Emily Blunt To Star in ‘Pain Hustlers’ For Director David Yates; The Veterans, CAA Media Finance Launching Sales At Canneson May 11, 2022 at 4:30 pm
Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer) is attached to star in the upcoming film Pain Hustlers, from director David Yates (Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore). Pic will be introduced to buyers at the ...
- Blocking inflammation with drugs could lead to harder-to-treat painon May 11, 2022 at 4:25 pm
Using anti-inflammatory drugs and steroids to relieve pain could increase the chances of developing chronic pain, according to researchers from McGill University and colleagues in Italy. Their ...
- Short-term use of ibuprofen may increase chance of chronic pain, study suggestson May 11, 2022 at 2:18 pm
Researchers say more research needed into possible link between anti-inflammatory drugs and longer-term problems such as back pain ...
- T-Pain's Wiscansin Fest in Milwaukee reveals lineup, with Lil Jon, Yung Bleu, Hannibal Buress, 14 other actson May 11, 2022 at 12:04 pm
T-Pain really worked his contacts for his inaugural Wiscansin Fest, locking in 17 additional acts for the Milwaukee bash at the Rave June 11. Lil Jon, Yung Bleu, O.T. Genasis, Kid Ink, Juvenile, Mija ...
- Common Medications Can Prolong Back Pain When Overused, Study Sayson May 11, 2022 at 11:19 am
A clinical trial will be needed to verify the research, which offered a warning about taking steroids or nonprescription drugs for weeks on end.
via Bing News