QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

HOME  |   SEARCH  |   ARCHIVE  |   SUBSCRIBE  |   CONTACT  |   HELP

The Journal of Neuroscience, August 10, 2005, 25(32):7333-7341; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1100-05.2005

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit an eLetter Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (35) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Dunckley, P. Articles by Tracey, I. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Dunckley, P. Articles by Tracey, I.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Behavioral/Systems/Cognitive
A Comparison of Visceral and Somatic Pain Processing in the Human Brainstem Using Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Paul Dunckley,^1,2 Richard G. Wise,^1,2 Merle Fairhurst,^1,2 Peter Hobden,² Qasim Aziz,³ Lin Chang,⁴ and Irene Tracey^1,2

¹Department of Human Anatomy and Genetics and ²Centre for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Brain, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QX, United Kingdom, ³Department of GI Science, University of Manchester, Hope Hospital, Salford M6 8HD, United Kingdom, and ⁴Center for Neurovisceral Sciences and Women's Health, Division of Digestive Diseases, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90073

Evidence from both human and animal studies has demonstrated a key role for brainstem centers in the control of ascending nociceptive input. Nuclei such as the rostral ventromedial medulla and periaqueductal gray (PAG) are able to both inhibit and facilitate the nociceptive response. It has been proposed that altered descending modulation may underlie many of the chronic pain syndromes (both somatic and visceral). We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to image the neural correlates of visceral and somatic pain within the brainstem. Ten healthy subjects were scanned twice at 3 tesla, during which they received matched, moderately painful, electrical stimuli to either the midline lower abdomen or rectum. Significant activation was observed in regions consistent with the PAG, nucleus cuneiformis (NCF), ventral tegmental area/substantia nigra, parabrachial nuclei/nucleus ceruleus, and red nucleus bilaterally to both stimuli. Marked spatial similarities in activation were observed for visceral and somatic pain, although significantly greater activation of the NCF (left NCF, p = 0.02; right NCF, p = 0.01; Student's paired t test, two-tailed) was observed in the visceral pain group compared with the somatic group. Right PAG activity correlated with anxiety during visceral stimulation (r = 0.74; p < 0.05, Pearson's r, two-tailed) but not somatic stimulation. We propose that the differences in NCF and right PAG activation observed may represent a greater nocifensive response and greater emotive salience of visceral over somatic pain.

Key words: visceral; somatic; fMRI; rectum; pain; brainstem

---

Received March 21, 2005; revised June 21, 2005; accepted June 21, 2005.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				K. D'Ardenne, S. M. McClure, L. E. Nystrom, and J. D. Cohen BOLD Responses Reflecting Dopaminergic Signals in the Human Ventral Tegmental Area Science, February 29, 2008; 319(5867): 1264 - 1267. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. M. Berman, B. D. Naliboff, B. Suyenobu, J. S. Labus, J. Stains, G. Ohning, L. Kilpatrick, J. A. Bueller, K. Ruby, J. Jarcho, et al. Reduced Brainstem Inhibition during Anticipated Pelvic Visceral Pain Correlates with Enhanced Brain Response to the Visceral Stimulus in Women with Irritable Bowel Syndrome J. Neurosci., January 9, 2008; 28(2): 349 - 359. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				L. Becerra, S. Morris, S. Bazes, R. Gostic, S. Sherman, J. Gostic, G. Pendse, E. Moulton, S. Scrivani, D. Keith, et al. Trigeminal Neuropathic Pain Alters Responses in CNS Circuits to Mechanical (Brush) and Thermal (Cold and Heat) Stimuli. J. Neurosci., October 18, 2006; 26(42): 10646 - 10657. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. R. Keltner, A. Furst, C. Fan, R. Redfern, B. Inglis, and H. L. Fields Isolating the modulatory effect of expectation on pain transmission: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study. J. Neurosci., April 19, 2006; 26(16): 4437 - 4443. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. Nicotra, H. D. Critchley, C. J. Mathias, and R. J. Dolan Emotional and autonomic consequences of spinal cord injury explored using functional brain imaging Brain, March 1, 2006; 129(3): 718 - 728. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				R. M. McAllen, M. Farrell, J. M. Johnson, D. Trevaks, L. Cole, M. J. McKinley, G. Jackson, D. A. Denton, and G. F. Egan Human medullary responses to cooling and rewarming the skin: A functional MRI study PNAS, January 17, 2006; 103(3): 809 - 813. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home  |   Search  |   Archive  |   Subscribe  |   Contact  |   Help