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56. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e. V. (DGNC)
3èmes journées françaises de Neurochirurgie (SFNC)

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e. V.
Société Française de Neurochirurgie

07. bis 11.05.2005, Strasbourg

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Neurotrophic factors as pathogenic factor in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with chronic neuropathic pain

Neurotrophe Wachstumsfaktoren als pathogenetischer Faktor im Liquor von Patienten mit neuropathischem Schmerz

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  • corresponding author H.-H. Capelle - Neurochirurgische Klinik, Universitätsklinikum Mannheim
  • R. Weigel - Neurochirurgische Klinik, Universitätsklinikum Mannheim
  • J. K. Krauss - Neurochirurgische Klinik, Universitätsklinikum Mannheim

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie. Société Française de Neurochirurgie. 56. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e.V. (DGNC), 3èmes journées françaises de Neurochirurgie (SFNC). Strasbourg, 07.-11.05.2005. Düsseldorf, Köln: German Medical Science; 2005. DocP036

The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at: http://www.egms.de/en/meetings/dgnc2005/05dgnc0304.shtml

Published: May 4, 2005

© 2005 Capelle et al.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/deed.en). You are free: to Share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work, provided the original author and source are credited.

Outline

Text

Objective

The purpose of this study was to analyze the levels of neurotrophic factors in the CSF of patients with chronic neuropathic pain in comparison to controls with lumbar back disorders and hydrocephalus. The pathophysiology of neuropathic pain is still poorly understood. Studies in experimental animals showed that neurotrophic factors such as GDNF, BDNF, CNTF and βNGF might be involved in the processing of neuropathic pain at spinal relays in the dorsal root entry zone. Thus far, it has not been investigated whether neurotrophic factors are altered in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with different pain syndromes.

Methods

The levels of GDNF, BDNF, CNTF, and β-NGF were analyzed in the lumbar CSF of 8 patients with chronic neuropathic pain, 10 patients with normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) and 20 patients with lumbar back disorders undergoing myelography, by using ELISA assays. The myelographies were performed for diagnostic purposes, and in the NPH patients CSF was removed to select patients for surgery. The protocol was approved by the local Ethics Committee, and all patients gave informed consent.

Results

The CSF titers of BDNF, CNTF and β-NGF were not significantly different in patients with neuropathic pain when compared to patients with lumbar back disorders, or to patients with NPH. Preleminary results showed that the concentrations of GDNF in patients with neuropathic pain were found to be significantly lower as compared to the group of patients with lumbar back disorders (P<0.05), but were not significantly different from the group of patients with NPH.

Conclusions

These findings may indicate a role of GDNF in the pathophysiology of neuropathic pain. Further investigations are necessary to confirm this observation, and to clarify the possible role between the turnover of GDNF and the development of neuropathic pain in man.