Clinical Research Directory

Pain Phenotyping of Rheumatic Diseases - An Observational Study

Background: Rheumatic diseases can affect the joints, ligaments, tendons, bones, muscles, and skin. They can also cause inflammation, damage body tissues, and change nerve signals in the brain. This can lead to ongoing pain that interferes with daily life. Researchers want to know more about how pain affects the lives of those with rheumatic diseases. Objective: To learn how the body and brain experience pain in people with and without rheumatic diseases. Eligibility: People aged 9 to 85 years with a diagnosed or suspected rheumatic disease and ongoing pain. They must be enrolled in protocols 01-AR-0227, 94-AR-0066, or 11-AR-0223. Healthy volunteers are also needed. Design: All participants will have an initial visit and may have up to 5 follow-up clinic visits spaced about 6 months apart. Each visit may last 3 to 4 hours. Patients with rheumatic diseases may have up to 2 more visits if they have a disease flare-up. All participants will have these procedures at each visit: Bedside quantitative sensory testing (B-QST): The participant's body will be touched with various probes: a cotton tip, a tuning fork, an ice-cold tuning fork, a heat probe, a device that applies pressure, and a probe with a sharp tip. These probes will not cause injury. Participants will describe how the touches feel and rate the intensity on a scale of 1 to 10. Questionnaires: They will rate their overall health, quality of life, and any disease activity. Research blood: Blood will be collected during the visits. Some blood will be used for how environmental factors affect our genes. Physical exam and History review: They will provide information about their medical history and physical exam will be performed by a clinician.