Benjamin Rahm1, Michael Lacour2, Jean Decety3, Juliane Müller2, Carl-Eduard Scheidt2, Joachim Bauer2, Ralf König2, Michael Wirsching2, Volkmar Glauche4, Sabine Ohlendorf5, Thomas Unterbrink2, Armin Hartmann2, Andreas A Joos6. 1. Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Clinic and Polyclinic for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center, Mainz, Germany. 2. Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany. 3. Department of Psychology, and Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States. 4. Department of Neurology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany. 5. Medical Physics, Department of Radiology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany. 6. Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany. Electronic address: andreas.joos@uniklinik-freiburg.de.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Dysfunction of central nervous pain processing is assumed to play a key role in primary fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome. This pilot study examined differences of pain processing associated with adopting different interpersonal perspectives. METHODS: Eleven FM patients and 11 healthy controls (HC) were scanned with functional magnetic resonance imaging. Participants were trained to take either a self-perspective or another person's perspective when viewing the visual stimuli. Stimuli showed body parts in painful situations of varying intensity (low, medium, and high) and visually similar but neutral situations. RESULTS: Patients with FM showed a higher increase in blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) response, particularly in the supplementary motor area (SMA). All pain-related regions of interest (anterior insula, somatosensory cortices, anterior cingulate cortex, and SMA) showed stronger modulation of BOLD responses in FM patients in the self-perspective. In contrast to pain processing regions, perspective-related regions (e.g. temporoparietal junction) did not differ between FM and HC. CONCLUSIONS: The stronger response of all four pain processing cerebral regions during self-perspective is discussed in the light of disturbed bottom-up processing. Furthermore, the results confirm earlier reports of augmented pain processing in FM, and provide evidence for sensitization of central nervous pain processing.
BACKGROUND: Dysfunction of central nervous pain processing is assumed to play a key role in primary fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome. This pilot study examined differences of pain processing associated with adopting different interpersonal perspectives. METHODS: Eleven FM patients and 11 healthy controls (HC) were scanned with functional magnetic resonance imaging. Participants were trained to take either a self-perspective or another person's perspective when viewing the visual stimuli. Stimuli showed body parts in painful situations of varying intensity (low, medium, and high) and visually similar but neutral situations. RESULTS:Patients with FM showed a higher increase in blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) response, particularly in the supplementary motor area (SMA). All pain-related regions of interest (anterior insula, somatosensory cortices, anterior cingulate cortex, and SMA) showed stronger modulation of BOLD responses in FM patients in the self-perspective. In contrast to pain processing regions, perspective-related regions (e.g. temporoparietal junction) did not differ between FM and HC. CONCLUSIONS: The stronger response of all four pain processing cerebral regions during self-perspective is discussed in the light of disturbed bottom-up processing. Furthermore, the results confirm earlier reports of augmented pain processing in FM, and provide evidence for sensitization of central nervous pain processing.
Authors: Arpana Gupta; Emeran A Mayer; Connor Fling; Jennifer S Labus; Bruce D Naliboff; Jui-Yang Hong; Lisa A Kilpatrick Journal: J Neurosci Res Date: 2017-01-02 Impact factor: 4.164