Are the anti-inflammatory effects of sympathectomy in murine antigen-induced arthritis associated with a reduction of Th1 and Th17 responses?
Sympathetic activity mainly increases the severity of acute episodes of immune-mediated arthritis. Therapeutic reduction of sympathetic activity at acute stages attenuates inflammation, hyperalgesia and proinflammatory immune parameters.
In the absence of better information, trends in the MAAD for Indigenous Australians may provide a way of assessing whether mortality rates are decreasing, but large sample sizes are needed to distinguish real change from statistical noise. Comparisons of trends in the MAAD between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians are even more difficult to interpret. Resources should be directed towards improving the validity of rates, for example, through linkage of routine data or investing in additional data collection.