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Objectives: Lipedema is a chronic adipose tissue disorder characterized by disproportionate fat accumulation, lower extremity pain, functional impairment, and reduced quality of life. Although pain is a cardinal symptom, its underlying mechanisms remain incompletely understood. This study aimed to characterize sensitization-related pain phenotypes in women with lipedema by examining central sensitization (CS) and neuropathic -like pain features and their associations with lower extremity function, sleep quality, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Methods: In this cross-sectional case–control study, 54 women with clinically diagnosed lipedema and 48 age-matched control participants were enrolled between March and October 2025. Pain phenotypes were assessed using the Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI) and Pain-DETECT questionnaire. Lower extremity function, sleep quality, and HRQoL were evaluated using Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS), Jenkins Sleep Scale (JSS), and EuroQol-5D-3L (EQ-5D-3L), respectively. Results: Women with lipedema had significantly higher Pain-DETECT and CSI scores than controls, indicating greater neuropathic-like pain features and CS-related symptom burden (both p < .01). They also demonstrated poorer lower extremity function, greater sleep disturbance, and lower HRQoL. Pain-DETECT scores were positively correlated with CSI, anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbance scores. In multivariable analyses, LEFS independently predicted Pain-DETECT scores (B = −0.171, p = .015), whereas anxiety independently predicted CSI scores (B = 1.980, p = .002). Conclusions: Women with lipedema exhibit prominent sensitization-related pain phenotypes associated with functional impairment, sleep disturbances, and reduced quality of life. Identification of these pain characteristics may improve clinical assessment, patient stratification, and multidisciplinary management of lower extremity symptoms in lipedema.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine the frequency of probable lipedema among women with lower extremity pain (LEP) using a validated screening questionnaire and to examine its associations with neuropathic pain (NP) characteristics, functional status, psychological symptoms, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Methods: This prospective questionnaire-based case–control study included 133 women, comprising 68 women with LEP and 65 age-matched healthy controls. Participants were evaluated using the Lipedema Screening Questionnaire (LSQ), Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), PainDETECT questionnaire, and 12-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12). An LSQ score of ≥8 was classified as probable lipedema, whereas a score of ≥12 was classified as high-probability lipedema. These categories indicate screening probability rather than a confirmed clinical diagnosis of lipedema. Group comparisons, correlation analyses, and multivariable regression analyses were performed to examine factors associated with LSQ and LEFS scores. Results: Women with LEP had significantly higher LSQ scores and a greater proportion of probable lipedema (36.8% vs 12.3%, p = .001) and high-probability lipedema (19.1% vs 3.1%, p = .003) than controls. Compared with controls, women with LEP had poorer lower extremity function, greater anxiety symptoms, more prominent NP characteristics, and lower physical and mental HRQoL scores (all p < .05). Higher LSQ scores were positively correlated with PainDETECT scores (r = 0.446, p < .001), whereas pain intensity was not significantly correlated with the evaluated clinical outcomes. In multivariable linear regression, PainDETECT score was independently associated with LSQ score (β = 0.382, p = .004). For functional status, both the SF-12 physical (β = 0.352, p = .001) and mental component scores (β = 0.362, p = .002) were independently associated with LEFS scores. Conclusions: Probable lipedema was more frequently identified by LSQ among women with LEP than among healthy controls. NP characteristics were independently associated with greater lipedema-related symptom burden, whereas lower extremity function was independently associated with both physical and mental HRQoL. These findings support the use of lipedema and NP screening as complementary components of the clinical assessment of women with LEP. However, LSQ findings should not be interpreted as a clinical diagnosis of lipedema and require confirmation through appropriate clinical assessment.

Lipedema is a chronic disorder characterized by disproportionate subcutaneous fat accumulation and pain, with an incompletely understood inflammatory component. It remains unclear whether this inflammatory profile is disease-specific or primarily driven by coexisting adiposity. This study aimed to evaluate systemic inflammatory markers in women with lipedema compared with women with obesity and normal-weight controls. This retrospective study included 229 women aged 30–65 years: 78 with lipedema, 76 with obesity without lipedema, and 75 normal-weight controls. Demographic and laboratory data were obtained from medical records. Inflammatory indices, including the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, systemic immune-inflammation index, C-reactive protein-to-albumin ratio, and C-reactive protein–albumin–lymphocyte index, were calculated. Group comparisons were performed using one-way analysis of variance with appropriate post hoc tests. Age was similar across groups, whereas body mass index was significantly higher in the lipedema and obesity groups than in controls (p<0.001). The erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein level, and CAR were significantly higher in both the lipedema and obesity groups compared with controls, whereas no significant differences were observed between lipedema and obesity groups. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, systemic immune-inflammation index, and C-reactive protein–albumin–lymphocyte index did not differ significantly among groups. Inflammatory indices were generally comparable across lipedema grades. These findings suggest that lipedema is associated with low-grade systemic inflammation; however, its inflammatory profile largely overlaps with obesity, indicating shared inflammatory mechanisms rather than a distinct systemic inflammatory phenotype. Among the evaluated markers, C-reactive protein-based parameters, particularly the C-reactive protein-to-albumin ratio, appeared to better reflect inflammatory burden than hematological composite indices.

Hand osteoarthritis (HOA) is a common musculoskeletal condition characterized by joint pain and structural changes; however, the role of systemic inflammation in its pathogenesis remains unclear. This retrospective case-control study aimed to evaluate both traditional and novel systemic inflammatory markers in patients with HOA and to examine their associations with Kellgren–Lawrence grade and erosive disease. A total of 175 patients with HOA and 94 age- and sex-matched controls were included. C-reactive protein and C-reactive protein/albumin ratio (CAR) levels were higher in patients with HOA compared with controls ( P = .015 and P = .004, respectively), while albumin levels were lower ( P = .044). No significant differences were observed for erythrocyte sedimentation rate or hematologic inflammatory indices including systemic immune-inflammation index, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio, and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (all P > .05). When stratified by Kellgren–Lawrence grade, no associations were found between inflammatory markers and radiographic severity (all P > .05). In subgroup analysis, CAR levels were higher in both erosive and nonerosive HOA groups compared with controls ( P = .046 and P = .021, respectively), whereas no significant differences were observed between erosive and nonerosive HOA groups ( P = .593). In multivariable logistic regression analysis, no individual inflammatory marker showed an independent association with the presence of HOA (all P > .05). Receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that CAR had limited discriminative ability for HOA (area under the curve = 0.594, standard error = 0.036, P = .011). In conclusion, although C-reactive protein and CAR levels were elevated in patients with HOA, these markers were not independently associated with disease presence and were not related to disease severity or erosive status. These findings suggest that systemic inflammatory markers may have a limited role in reflecting disease processes in HOA, and that inflammatory activity may be partly localized and not fully captured by circulating markers. Further prospective studies are needed to better define the inflammatory profile of HOA.

Objective: To examine whether problematic smartphone use is associated with pain intensity, functional disability, emotional distress, sleep quality, and health-related quality of life in individuals with cervicogenic headache compared with healthy adults. Design: Case–control study. Setting: Outpatient clinics of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Neurology at a university hospital. Participants: A total of 158 adults, including 78 individuals diagnosed with cervicogenic headache and 80 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Main measures: Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Form, Headache Impact Test-6, Neck Disability Index, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Jenkins Sleep Scale, and Short Form-12 Health Survey. Results: Individuals with cervicogenic headache reported significantly higher levels of smartphone-related behavioural problems, headache impact, neck-related disability, anxiety, depressive symptoms, and sleep disturbance than healthy controls (all p < 0.05). Physical and mental health-related quality of life scores were significantly lower in the cervicogenic headache group. Problematic smartphone use was positively associated with depressive symptoms ( r = 0.224) and poor sleep quality ( r = 0.369), and negatively associated with mental health-related quality of life ( r = −0.277). Neck-related disability ( β = 0.327) and mental health-related quality of life ( β = 0.551) were independent predictors of problematic smartphone use, explaining 31% of the variance. Conclusions: Problematic smartphone use is associated with greater symptom burden, emotional distress, sleep problems, and reduced quality of life in individuals with cervicogenic headache. Smartphone-related behavioural patterns may represent a modifiable factor to be considered within comprehensive rehabilitation and lifestyle-based management strategies.

To compare clinical sensitization phenotype (CSP) and neuropathic-like pain features (NLPF) in patients with cervicogenic headache (CGH) and asymptomatic controls, and, within CGH group, to examine their associations with psychological distress, sleep quality, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). In this case-control study, 39 patients with CGH and 36 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were evaluated between July and October 2025. CSP and NLPF were assessed using Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI) and pain-DETECT questionnaire. Headache impact, neck disability, psychological distress, sleep quality, and HRQoL were evaluated using Headache Impact Test (HIT-6), Neck Disability Index (NDI), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Jenkins Sleep Scale (JSS), and SF-36. CGH patients showed significantly higher CSI, HIT-6, NDI, HADS, and JSS scores than controls (all p < 0.001), indicating a pronounced CSP, greater disability, and increased psychosocial burden. Although pain-DETECT scores were higher in CGH group, between-group difference did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.074); however, a moderate effect size suggested potential clinical relevance. Within CGH group, CSI scores correlated strongly with HADS (r = 0.68), NDI (r = 0.64), and JSS (r = 0.59). Regression analyses showed that CSI scores were independently associated with pain-DETECT scores (B = 0.275, p = 0.008), while pain-DETECT (B = 0.986, p = 0.008) and JSS scores (B = 0.910, p = 0.037) were independently associated with CSI levels. CSP and NLPF represent interrelated clinical pain phenotypes in CGH and are associated with greater disability, psychological distress, and sleep disturbance. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT07292181, Registration date: 3 July 2025.

Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) and greater trochanteric pain syndrome (GTPS) can co-exist and exacerbate each other’s symptoms. This study aimed to evaluate the frequency of GTPS and the relationship between GTPS and disability, quality of life (QoL) and structural abnormalities, such as varum and valgum, coxa vara and valga, and leg length discrepancy in patients with KOA. This cross-sectional study was conducted with 108 patients between November 2023 and May 2024. Knee, low back, and hip pain severity levels were evaluated using the Visual Analog Scale, KOA grade using the Kellgren-Lawrence (KL) classification, disability using the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), and QoL using the Short Form-36 (SF-36). 90,7% of the patients were women. The KL grade of KOA was 3 in nearly half of the patients. The frequency of genu varum was very high, at 62%. The frequency of unilateral GTPSwas 33%, and that of bilateral GTPS was 42.6%. The mean scale scores were 50.4±18 for the total WOMAC, 30±25 for the SF-36 general health component, and 48.6±16.0 for the SF-36 mental health component. The presence of genu varum (rho=0.213, p=0.027) and an increase in the KL grade of KOA (rho=0.370, p<0.001) were associated with the development of GTPS. It was found that GTPS was very common among patients with KOA and that it impaired knee functions and reduced the QoL. According to the results, investigating the presence of GTPS in patients with KOA will facilitate the treatment of KOA, a condition that is challenging, resistant to treatment, and costly to treat.