Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic central sensitivity syndrome characterized by augmented pain processing at diffuse body sites and presents as a multimorbid clinical condition. Long COVID (LC) is a heterogenous clinical syndrome that affects 10-20% of individuals following COVID-19 infection. FM and LC share similarities with regard to the pain and other clinical symptoms experienced, thereby posing a challenge for accurate diagnosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia (FM) have relied heavily on subjective reports of experienced symptoms coupled with examination-based evidence of diffuse tenderness due to the lack of reliable biomarkers. Rheumatic disorders that are common causes of chronic pain such as rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, osteoarthritis, and chronic low back pain are frequently found to be comorbid with FM. As a result, this can make the diagnosis of FM more challenging.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic muscle pain disorder that shares several clinical features with other related rheumatologic disorders. This study investigates the feasibility of using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) as a fingerprinting approach to diagnose FM and other rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), osteoarthritis (OA), and chronic low back pain (CLBP). Blood samples were obtained on protein saver cards from FM ( = 83), non-FM ( = 54), and healthy (NC, = 9) subjects.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA nondestructive and rapid classification approach was developed for identifying aflatoxin-contaminated single peanut kernels using field-portable vibrational spectroscopy instruments (FT-IR and Raman). Single peanut kernels were either spiked with an aflatoxin solution (30 ppb-400 ppb) or hexane (control), and their spectra were collected via Raman and FT-IR. An uHPLC-MS/MS approach was used to verify the spiking accuracy via determining actual aflatoxin content on the surface of randomly selected peanut samples.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPost Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC or Long COVID) is characterized by lingering symptomatology post-initial COVID-19 illness that is often debilitating. It is seen in up to 30-40% of individuals post-infection. Patients with Long COVID (LC) suffer from dysautonomia, malaise, fatigue, and pain, amongst a multitude of other symptoms.
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