调节副交感神经系统的张力可以导致多个层次的生理反应，包括降低炎性细胞因子的产生。许多研究已经表明，慢性炎症性疾病与副交感神经活动的减少和交感神经活动的增加有关。此外，研究显示，风湿性关节炎（RA）患者的副交感神经活动低且交感神经活动高，与接受抗肿瘤坏死因子（TNF）治疗的RA患者相比，预测治疗反应较差。通过电刺激迷走神经可以恢复自主神经系统的平衡。考虑到对现有药物反应不佳、药物效果逐渐减弱或药物相关的不良事件的患者，如生物电子学这种非药物方法可能是风湿病治疗策略的有益补充。然而，在神经免疫学领域，还需要进一步的研究和新治疗策略的发展。© 2023作者授予Springer Medizin Verlag GmbH独家许可，该公司是Springer Nature的一部分。

Modulation of the parasympathetic tone leads to extensive physiological reactions at several levels, including the decreased production of proinflammatory cytokines. Many studies have demonstrated that chronic inflammatory diseases are associated with reduced parasympathetic and increased sympathetic activities. Moreover, it was demonstrated that a low parasympathetic and a high sympathetic activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) predicts a poor therapeutic response to anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) treatment compared to RA patients with a more balanced autonomic nervous system. The autonomic equilibrium could be restored by electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve. Considering the patients who do not sufficiently respond to the available drugs, patients for whom the effectiveness of the drugs wanes over time, or have drug-related adverse events, a nonpharmacological approach such as bioelectronics might be a useful supplement as an instrument in the successful extension of the therapeutic armamentarium for rheumatic diseases; however, there is a great need for further studies and the development of novel therapeutic strategies in the field of neuroimmunology.© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Medizin Verlag GmbH, ein Teil von Springer Nature.