Low back pain is one of the most common health problems in the world. It affects people of all ages, but it becomes more common as people get older.
For many people, the pain does not go away quickly. Instead, it becomes long-term and can affect daily life, including work, sleep, and simple activities like walking or sitting.
One of the biggest challenges with low back pain is that doctors often cannot find a clear cause. In many cases, scans do not show a specific injury or problem that explains the pain.
This makes it harder to treat, especially over the long term. Because of this, scientists are looking for new ways to understand where the pain comes from and how to treat it more effectively.
A new study published in the journal Bone Research has found a possible new approach. The research was led by Dr. Janet L. Crane at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The study suggests that a hormone called parathyroid hormone, or PTH, may help reduce chronic back pain by stopping abnormal nerve growth in the spine.
PTH is a natural hormone made by small glands in the neck. It helps control calcium levels in the body and plays an important role in keeping bones strong.
Doctors already use a man-made version of this hormone to treat osteoporosis, a condition that makes bones weak and easy to break. Some patients who take this treatment have reported less pain, but until now, scientists did not fully understand why.
To study this, the researchers used mice with different types of spinal damage. Some mice had age-related changes, some had spine instability, and others had genetic problems that affected their spine. These models helped scientists understand how the spine changes over time and how pain develops.
The mice were given daily injections of PTH for several weeks. After treatment, the researchers carefully studied their spines and tested how sensitive they were to pain. They used different methods, such as applying pressure, heat, and movement, to see how the mice responded.
The results were encouraging. The mice that received PTH showed stronger and healthier structures in their spine. In particular, an area called the vertebral endplate became more stable. This area is important because it supports the discs in the spine and helps absorb pressure.
At the same time, the treated mice were less sensitive to pain. They could tolerate pressure better, reacted more slowly to heat, and were more active overall. This suggests that the treatment was not only improving the structure of the spine but also reducing the feeling of pain.
The researchers then looked more closely at what was happening inside the spine. They found that in damaged areas, pain-sensing nerves had grown into places where they are not usually found. These extra nerves can increase pain signals and make the condition worse.
After treatment with PTH, there were fewer of these abnormal nerve fibers. This led the scientists to investigate how the hormone was causing this change. They discovered that PTH stimulates bone-forming cells to produce a protein called Slit3. This protein acts like a signal that pushes nerve fibers away, stopping them from growing into sensitive areas.
Further experiments showed that Slit3 directly affects nerve cells. When nerve cells were exposed to this protein, they grew less and were less likely to spread into new areas. When the researchers blocked Slit3, the benefits of PTH disappeared. This confirmed that Slit3 plays a key role in reducing nerve growth and pain.
The study also identified another protein, called FoxA2, which helps control the production of Slit3. This gives scientists a better understanding of how the whole process works inside the body.
Although this research was done in animals, it offers an important clue about how back pain develops and how it might be treated. It suggests that pain is not only caused by physical damage but also by changes in nerve growth inside the spine.
In conclusion, this study shows that PTH may help reduce back pain by improving bone structure and limiting abnormal nerve growth. This is a new way of thinking about treatment, focusing not just on symptoms but also on the underlying process.
However, more research in humans is needed before this treatment can be widely used. If future studies confirm these results, this approach could offer new hope for people living with long-term back pain.
If you care about pain, please read studies about vitamin K deficiency linked to hip fractures in old people, and these vitamins could help reduce bone fracture risk.
For more health information, please see recent studies that Krill oil could improve muscle health in older people, and eating yogurt linked to lower frailty in older people.
Source: Johns Hopkins University.
