STUDY DESIGN: A preclinical animal model of chronic ligation of the sciatic nerve was used to compare the effectiveness of a slow-release hydrogel carrying @entity1667 to @entity1667 injection alone, which simulates the current standard of care for chronic @entity2850 ( @entity2850 ). OBJECTIVE: To extend the short-term benefits of @entity479 injections by using a nonswelling, biodegradable hydrogel as carrier to locally release @entity1667 in a regulated and sustained way at the site of nerve compression. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: @entity2850 affects millions worldwide annually, and is a cause of @entity717 with significant societal impact. Currently, a leading nonsurgical therapy involves epidural injection of @entity230 to temporarily alleviate the @entity158 associated with @entity2850 . However, an effective way to extend the short-term effect of @entity479 treatment to address the chronic component of @entity2850 does not exist. METHODS: We induced chronic @entity2850 of @entity35 by permanent ligation. Forty-eight hours later we injected our @entity1667 infused hydrogel and assessed the effectiveness of our treatment for 4 weeks. We quantified mechanical @entity1931 using a Dynamic Plantar Aesthesiometer (Ugo Basile, Stoelting Co., IL, USA), whereas gait analysis was conducted using the Catwalk automated gait analysis platform (Noldus, Leesburg, VA, USA). Macrophage staining was performed with immunohistochemistry and quantification of @entity2842 in sciatic nerve lysates was performed with multiplex immunoassay using a SECTOR Imager 2400A (Meso Scale Discovery, Rockville, MA, USA). RESULTS: We demonstrate that using the hydrogel to deliver @entity1667 results in significant (P<0.05) reduction of @entity1931 and improvement in the gait pattern of animals with chronic lesions as compared with animals treated with @entity479 alone. In addition, animals treated with hydrogel plus @entity479 showed significant reduction in the number of infiltrating macrophages at the sciatic nerve and reduced expression of the neuroinflammatory chemokine @entity2842 (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Use of hydrogels as carriers for sustained local release of @entity230 provides significantly better control of @entity158 in an animal model of chronic @entity2850 . Our @entity479 -infused hydrogel could be an effective extender of the short-term benefits of epidural @entity479 injections for @entity1 with chronic compression-induced @entity158 . LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: N/A.

Sustained Local Release of XXXX From a Thiol-Acrylate Poly(Ethylene Glycol) Hydrogel for Treating Chronic Compressive Radicular Pain.

@entity1667 :: ('MESH:D008775', 'Chemical') :: ['methylprednisolone'] @entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['patients'] @entity1931 :: ('MESH:D006930', 'Disease') :: ['hyperalgesia'] @entity35 :: ('10116', 'Species') :: ['rats'] @entity2850 :: ('MESH:D009408', 'Disease') :: ['compressive radiculopathy', 'CR', 'compression injury of the sciatic nerves'] @entity2842 :: ('6347', 'Gene') :: ['monocyte chemoattractant protein-1'] @entity158 :: ('MESH:D010146', 'Disease') :: ['pain', 'radicular pain'] @entity230 :: ('MESH:D013256', 'Chemical') :: ['steroids'] @entity717 :: ('MESH:D009069', 'Disease') :: ['costly disability'] @entity479 :: ('D013256', 'Chemical') :: ['steroid']
@entity1667 :: (MESH:D008775,Chemical) :: ['Methylprednisolone']
