European journal of pain : EJP
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EphB receptors and their ephrinB ligands are implicated in modulating spinal nociceptive information processing. Here, we investigated whether cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), acts as a downstream effector, participates in the modulation of spinal nociceptive information related to ephrinB/EphB signalling. ⋯ These results confirmed the important involvement of COX-2 in the modulation of spinal nociceptive information related to ephrinBs-EphBs signalling.
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Anticipatory postural adjustments (APAs) are motor responses generated to stabilize balance prior to voluntary movement. This study investigated how infrapatellar fat pad pain induces reorganization of APAs during reaction time tasks. It has been hypothesized that knee pain may cause insufficient APAs, thereby impairing the balance. ⋯ This study demonstrates that knee pain reorganizes the APAs which may destabilize the balance control. The knee pain-related reorganization of postural muscle activity during APA may be a part of the central modulation to maintain posture and protect the painful limb while preserving the reaction task movement performance.
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Review Meta Analysis
Quantitative meta-analysis of grey matter anomalies in neuropathic pain.
Increasing neuroimaging studies have revealed grey matter (GM) anomalies of several brain regions by voxel-based morphometry (VBM) studies in patients with neuropathic pain. The changes have been suggested to be related to central sensitization. Our aim was to investigate concurrence across VBM studies to identify whether different subtypes of neuropathic pain share a common pathophysiological basis revealed by structural abnormalities. ⋯ This meta-analysis shows strong evidence of brain GM anomalies within the pain matrix in patients with neuropathic pain compared with healthy subjects. Further studies are needed to determine whether the reported changes are specific to neuropathic pain or whether they may be common to other chronic pain.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Attention bias modification and its impact on experimental pain outcomes: Comparison of training with words versus faces in pain.
The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of training participants' attention towards or away from painful faces versus pain-related words on pain outcomes on an acute experimental pain paradigm. ⋯ These findings confirm that attentional biases are modifiable, and impact (in the expected manner) how quickly participants perceive pain. Further, exposure to painful faces resulted in additional benefits to the level of pain reported. However, we were unable to confirm that change in attentional biases was the mechanism of change.
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Movement accuracy is ensured by interaction between motor, somatosensory, and visual systems. In complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), this interaction is disturbed. To explore CRPS patients' visual perception of actions, we investigated how these patients evaluate the applied force in observed hand actions of another person. ⋯ We propose that the overestimation of force is explained both by the pain elicited by the observation and by the abnormal sensorimotor integration that is associated with perception of increased effort. This visually elicited unpleasantness and painfulness may promote avoidance of viewing own actions, further impairing the patients' motor performance.