Pain-free default mode network connectivity contributes to tonic experimental pain intensity beyond the role of negative mood and other pain-related factors.
Najah Alhajri, Shellie Ann Boudreau, André Mouraux, Thomas Graven‐nielsen
European Journal of Pain May 31, 2023 DOI: 10.1002/ejp.2141 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 52 |
| Population | Healthy volunteers (26 women) |
| Intervention | Capsaicin |
| Duration | 1 hour of capsaicin-evoked pain |
| Measures | numerical rating scale (0-10) |
| Topics | Default mode network |
| Keywords | Gyrus cinguli Neural pathways Humans Capsaicin Magnetic resonance imaging Pain measurement Brain mapping Affect Female |
| Key findings | Pain-free default mode network connectivity, specifically medial prefrontal cortex-left angular gyrus connectivity at lower alpha oscillations, accounted for 10% additional variance in peak capsaicin-evoked pain intensity beyond known contributors, with the final model explaining 66%. Negative affect and helplessness predicted greater peak pain, while depression predicted lower peak pain. The authors propose this connectivity may contribute to individual differences in pain vulnerability and could aid identification of people likely to develop chronic pain. |
Abstract
Background: Alterations in the default mode network (DMN) connectivity across pain stages suggest a possible DMN involvement in the transition to persistent pain.
Aim: This study examined whether pain-free DMN connectivity at lower alpha oscillations (8-10 Hz) accounts for a unique variation in experimental peak pain intensity beyond the contribution of factors known to influence pain intensity.
Methods: Pain-free DMN connectivity was measured with electroencephalography prior to 1 h of capsaicin-evoked pain using a topical capsaicin patch on the right forearm. Pain intensity was assessed on a (0-10) numerical rating scale and the association between peak pain intensity and baseline measurements was examined using hierarchical multiple regression in 52 healthy volunteers (26 women). The baseline measurements consisted of catastrophizing (helplessness, rumination, magnification), vigilance, depression, negative and positive affect, sex, age, sleep, fatigue, thermal and mechanical pain thresholds and DMN connectivity (medial prefrontal cortex [mPFC]-posterior cingulate cortex [PCC], mPFC-right angular gyrus [rAG], mPFC-left Angular gyrus [lAG], rAG-mPFC and rAG-PCC).
Results: Pain-free DMN connectivity increased the explained variance in peak pain intensity beyond the contribution of other factors (ΔR2 = 0.10, p = 0.003), with the final model explaining 66% of the variation (R2 = 0.66, ANOVA: p < 0.001). In this model, negative affect (β = 0.51, p < 0.001), helplessness (β = 0.49, p = 0.007), pain-free mPFC-lAG connectivity (β = 0.36, p = 0.003) and depression (β = -0.39, p = 0.009) correlated significantly with peak pain intensity. Interestingly, negative affect and depression, albeit both being negative mood indices, showed opposing relationships with peak pain intensity.
Conclusions: This work suggests that pain-free mPFC-lAG connectivity (at lower alpha) may contribute to individual variations in pain-related vulnerability.
Significance: These findings could potentially lead the way for investigations in which DMN connectivity is used in identifying individuals more likely to develop chronic pain.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on default mode network, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| A default mode of brain function Normal adult human brain | 2001 | Observational study | |
| Resting-State Functional Connectivity Reflects Structural Connectivity in the Default Mode Network Healthy subjects | 2008 | Observational cohort | |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| The precuneus/posterior cingulate cortex plays a pivotal role in the default mode network: Evidence from a partial correlation network analysis Healthy subjects | 2008 | Observational study |
Citations in the library
Cites 4
- Functional Reorganization of the Default Mode Network across Chronic Pain Conditions PLoS One September 2, 2014
- Disruption of default mode network dynamics in acute and chronic pain states NeuroImage: Clinical October 19, 2017
- Shared and connection-specific intrinsic interactions in the default mode network Neuroimage October 1, 2019
- Relationship Between Alpha Rhythm and the Default Mode Network: An EEG-fMRI Study Journal of clinical neurophysiology November 1, 2017