Abstract
Musculoskeletal (MSK) disorders are most one of the most commonly reported medical conditions (Figure 1), and are the leading cause of disability in the U.S. as they account for more than half of chronic conditions in people over age 50 (Figure 1) (Initiative USBaJ, 2020). The costs dwarf those of other conditions, coming close to 6% of the U.S. gross domestic product (Initiative USBaJ, 2020). Arthritis, pain, and trauma, as well as sarcopenia, cancer cachexia and other skeletal muscle diseases are key conditions that drive this societal burden (Arthur et al., 2014; Goates et al., 2019; Initiative USBaJ, 2020). These conditions are associated with a myriad of complex physiological changes not only involving the MSK system, but also the nervous system through integrated feedback and feedforward processes. Accordingly, we hosted a special research topic issue for Frontiers in Physiology that focused on integrative physiology of common chronic MSK disorders. We received 13 submissions for this special topic issue, of which seven were judged by us (the editors) and the peer-reviewers as meritorious for inclusion. These are briefly summarized here.