Inflammatory Signatures Linked to Development of Chronic Pain After Fracture-Related Surgery

Background: Chronic postsurgical pain remains a frequent and disabling complication after fracture-related surgery, affecting up to nearly half of patients within 1 year. The biological mechanisms underlying pain chronification are still incompletely understood. Data increasingly suggest that immune and inflammatory pathways modulate postoperative pain, yet specific circulating biomarker profiles that distinguish patients who develop chronic pain from those who recover normally have not been defined. Objective: To explore longitudinal changes in circulating cytokines, chemokines, and adipocytokines after fracture-related surgery and to determine whether distinct inflammatory biomarker patterns are associated with the later development of chronic postoperative pain. Design: Prospective, longitudinal, exploratory cohort study. Participants: 30 adult patients who underwent osteosynthesis for traumatic fractures. Methods: Blood samples were collected on the first postoperative day (D1), more...