This case-control study used structural and functional neuroimaging markers, i.e. resting-state cerebral blood flow (rsCBF), grey matter volume (GMV), rs functional connectivity (rsFC), and cortical thickness (CoTh) to estimate its association with chronic, stimulus-independent neuropathic pain via a resting-state hypothesis.
No indication of a rise in rsCBF in the brain areas involved
in pain processing was noted as opposed to the assumption that rsCBF is
increased in fibromyalgia in regions of the brain involved in pain processing.
This case-control study
used structural and functional neuroimaging markers,
i.e. resting-state cerebral blood flow (rsCBF), grey matter volume (GMV), rs functional connectivity (rsFC), and cortical thickness (CoTh) to estimate its association with chronic,
stimulus-independent neuropathic pain via a resting-state hypothesis.
Overall, 32 female fibromyalgia people and 32 pain-free
controls were included in this multimodal neuroimaging study. Inter-group
differences in neuroimaging markers were
evaluated with the use of whole-brain and region of interest analyses. All the analyses for anxiety and depression were adjusted. A
subgroup analysis restricted to patients not taking the central-acting drugs
was executed.
No differences in rsCBF of brain regions (somatosensory and prefrontal cortex, thalamus, basal ganglia, insula, anterior cingulate cortex, and supplementary motor area) were found to be involved in the processing of acute pain in fibromyalgia patients amongst both the groups.
The findings demonstrated robustness across all
structural and functional neuroimaging markers and were limited to people using
central-acting drugs and matched controls. Also, the markers of structural and
functional neuroimaging were not able to map stimulus-independent neuropathic
pain.
No evidence underlying the functional or structural
modifications in brain regions responsible for acute pain processing in
fibromyalgia people was noted that can indicate neural correlates of chronic
stimulus-independent pain.
Plos One
Altered central pain processing in fibromyalgia-A multimodal neuroimaging case-control study using arterial spin labelling
Monika Muller et al.
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