1-neuro bit about pain perception Flashcards
mechanisms of placebo analgesia
positive expectations (Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex) (DLPFC)
- mentally!!
leads to increased endogenous opioids (physiological!!)
- rostral anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)
- periaqueductal Gray (PAG)
biological mechanisms of nocebo hyperalgesia
expectations: the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
anxiety: cholecystokinin (CCK)
- anxiety-promoting hormone, which also has a facilitating effect on pain transmission
stress: the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA)
- release cortisol, suppress immune system
suppress endogenous opiods: nucleus accumbens (NAcc)
cholecystokinin (CCK)
anxiety-promoting hormone, which also has a facilitating effect on pain transmission
reduces placebo analgesia with its anti-opioid acting
hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis
release cortisol, suppress immune system
nucleus accumbens
suppress endogenous opioids
dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
expectations
How do ascending (afferent) nociceptive signals enter the brain
enter the brain through the spinal chord
are distributed through 3 different pathways, one of which is to the thamalus
where does the thalamus send projections to for interoception
- posterior insula
- anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)
- somatosensory cortex
which parts of the brain results in an increase in endogenous opioids?
anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)
periaqueductal gray (PAG)
what brain activity occurs only during first-person experience of pain?
primary somatosensory cortex (S1 or SI)
Secondary somatosensory cortex (S2 or SII)
- located in the posterior insula
primary somatosensory cortex
gets direct senssations! raw sensations
Secondary somatosensory cortex
located in the posterior insula
elaborates on the sensations obtained from S1
more complex sensations
what brain activity occurs during empathy for pain?
anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)
Bilateral Anterior Insula
descending pain-control pathways
can effect the ascending signals of pain
gate-control theory of pain
at each of the main relay points along the ascending pain pathways, there are “gates” that can be closed to make it harder for nociceptive impulses to get through
