New Delhi: Researchers led by Professor Nikita Gamper of the University of Leeds’ School of Biomedical Sciences have found that the body can efficiently make its own specific “sleeping pills” that, like benzodiazepines, dull impulses from a specific nerve and regulate an individual’s level of discomfort.
The results, complemented by earlier research by Professor Gamper and Professor Xiaona Du of Hebei Medical University in Shijiazhuang, China, may lead to a major advancement in pain management and a shift away from potent opioids like morphine or fentanyl. Scientists working on the study will look more closely at how this could benefit those who suffer from chronic pain with new research funding announced for the New Year.
According to Professor Gamper’s statement, “We know a lot about how people experience pain, but there isn’t much we can do about it. Opioids continue to be the gold standard despite all of the incredible findings and textbooks that have been written. No significant improvement over opioids has been made. If you have pain, you will probably be prescribed either opioids, which are really effective but hazardous, or ibuprofen, which is fine for mild pain but completely useless for severe pain or neuropathic pain.”
A class of depressive medications known as benzodiazepines, or “benzos,” are used as sleeping aids and to treat anxiety and seizures. At the University of Cincinnati, Professor Gamper and his colleagues Professor Du and Dr. Temugin Berta discovered that some cells that are connected to human nerves and reside in structures known as spinal ganglia can emit a peptide that functions similarly to benzos. These peptides do not, however, put the entire nervous system to sleep because the process is restricted to the peripheral nervous system; as a result, they do not pose the same concerns as dangerous and addictive opioids.
According to the research, nerves have the ability to “tune out” pain signals or limit how much pain the brain perceives a person to be feeling.
The results may provide patients attempting to manage chronic pain on a daily basis some optimism, according to Dr. Ganesan Baranidharan, a pain management consultant in Leeds. He stated: “One of the main issues facing the health service is chronic pain. Physiotherapy, injections, and surgeries are some of the ways that we try to help people in clinics manage their pain. Another method is “self-management,” which involves learning to live with pain. But long-term use of opioids and nerve medications can have serious side effects, like memory loss and zombie-like feelings, and some patients will have chronic pain that requires medication. In order to treat chronic pain, we need other options, even though some individuals respond quite effectively to small doses of opioids. Our patients will benefit more from our continued research and development of suitable medications to cure certain ailments.”
