Arthritis is a debilitating disorder with pain caused by inflammation and damage to joints. Yet, according to an article in Science Daily the condition is poorly managed in most patients, since adequate treatments are lacking — and the therapies that do exist to ease arthritis pain often cause serious side effects, particularly when used long-term. Any hope for developing more-effective treatments for arthritis relies on understanding the processes driving this condition.

A new study in the Journal of Neuroscience by researchers at McGill University adds to a growing body of evidence that the nervous system and nerve-growth factor (NGF) play a major role in arthritis. The findings also support the idea that reducing elevated levels of NGF — a protein that promotes the growth and survival of nerves, but also causes pain — may be an important strategy for developing treatment of arthritis pain.

To investigate the role of these abnormal sympathetic fibres, the McGill researchers used an agent to block the fibres’ function. They found that this reduced pain-related behaviour in the animals. “Our findings reinforce the idea that there is a neuropathic component to arthritis, and that sympathetic nerve fibres play a role in increasing the pain,” said McGill doctoral student Geraldine Longo, who co-authored the paper with Prof. Afredo Ribeiro-da-Silva and postdoctoral fellow Maria Osikowicz.

“We are currently using drugs to prevent the production of elevated levels of NGF in arthritic rats; we hope that our research will serve as a basis for the development of a new treatment for arthritis in the clinic,” said Prof. Ribeiro-da-Silva.

Apportionment of permanent disability in workers’ compensation cases can be based upon causation. As more information about the causation of arthritis is known, opportunities for employers to seek apportionment is enhanced.