Attention modulates spinal cord responses to pain.
Reduced pain perception while being distracted from pain is an everyday example of how cognitive processes can interfere with pain perception. Previous neuroimaging studies showed distraction-related modulations of pain-driven activations in various cortical and subcortical brain regions, but the pr...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
| Sprog: | English |
| Udgivet: |
2012
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| _version_ | 1826264289863794688 |
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| author | Sprenger, C Eippert, F Finsterbusch, J Bingel, U Rose, M Büchel, C |
| author_facet | Sprenger, C Eippert, F Finsterbusch, J Bingel, U Rose, M Büchel, C |
| author_sort | Sprenger, C |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | Reduced pain perception while being distracted from pain is an everyday example of how cognitive processes can interfere with pain perception. Previous neuroimaging studies showed distraction-related modulations of pain-driven activations in various cortical and subcortical brain regions, but the precise neuronal mechanism underlying this phenomenon is unclear. Using high-resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging of the human cervical spinal cord in combination with thermal pain stimulation and a well-established working memory task, we demonstrate that this phenomenon relies on an inhibition of incoming pain signals in the spinal cord. Neuronal responses to painful stimulation in the dorsal horn of the corresponding spinal segment were significantly reduced under high working memory load compared to low working memory load. At the individual level, reductions of neuronal responses in the spinal cord predicted behavioral pain reductions. In a subsequent behavioral experiment, using the opioid antagonist naloxone in a double-blind crossover design with the same paradigm, we demonstrate a substantial contribution of endogenous opioids to this mechanism. Taken together, our results show that the reduced pain experience during mental distraction is related to a spinal process and involves opioid neurotransmission. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-06T20:05:23Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:28bd1170-4edb-4a72-a1db-17971aa5ae1c |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-06T20:05:23Z |
| publishDate | 2012 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:28bd1170-4edb-4a72-a1db-17971aa5ae1c2022-03-26T12:14:47ZAttention modulates spinal cord responses to pain.Journal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:28bd1170-4edb-4a72-a1db-17971aa5ae1cEnglishSymplectic Elements at Oxford2012Sprenger, CEippert, FFinsterbusch, JBingel, URose, MBüchel, CReduced pain perception while being distracted from pain is an everyday example of how cognitive processes can interfere with pain perception. Previous neuroimaging studies showed distraction-related modulations of pain-driven activations in various cortical and subcortical brain regions, but the precise neuronal mechanism underlying this phenomenon is unclear. Using high-resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging of the human cervical spinal cord in combination with thermal pain stimulation and a well-established working memory task, we demonstrate that this phenomenon relies on an inhibition of incoming pain signals in the spinal cord. Neuronal responses to painful stimulation in the dorsal horn of the corresponding spinal segment were significantly reduced under high working memory load compared to low working memory load. At the individual level, reductions of neuronal responses in the spinal cord predicted behavioral pain reductions. In a subsequent behavioral experiment, using the opioid antagonist naloxone in a double-blind crossover design with the same paradigm, we demonstrate a substantial contribution of endogenous opioids to this mechanism. Taken together, our results show that the reduced pain experience during mental distraction is related to a spinal process and involves opioid neurotransmission. |
| spellingShingle | Sprenger, C Eippert, F Finsterbusch, J Bingel, U Rose, M Büchel, C Attention modulates spinal cord responses to pain. |
| title | Attention modulates spinal cord responses to pain. |
| title_full | Attention modulates spinal cord responses to pain. |
| title_fullStr | Attention modulates spinal cord responses to pain. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Attention modulates spinal cord responses to pain. |
| title_short | Attention modulates spinal cord responses to pain. |
| title_sort | attention modulates spinal cord responses to pain |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sprengerc attentionmodulatesspinalcordresponsestopain AT eippertf attentionmodulatesspinalcordresponsestopain AT finsterbuschj attentionmodulatesspinalcordresponsestopain AT bingelu attentionmodulatesspinalcordresponsestopain AT rosem attentionmodulatesspinalcordresponsestopain AT buchelc attentionmodulatesspinalcordresponsestopain |