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Central sensitization increases the pupil dilation elicited by mechanical pinprick stimulation

van den Broeke, E. N., Hartgerink, D. M., Butler, Joe, Lambert, J. and Mouraux, A. (2019) Central sensitization increases the pupil dilation elicited by mechanical pinprick stimulation. Journal of Neurophysiology, 121 (5). pp. 1621-1632. ISSN 0022-3077

Item Type: Article

Abstract

High-frequency electrical stimulation (HFS) of skin nociceptors triggers central sensitization (CS), manifested as increased pinprick sensitivity of the skin surrounding the site of HFS. Our aim was to assess the effect of CS on pinprick-evoked pupil dilation responses (PDRs) and pinprick-evoked brain potentials (PEPs). We hypothesized that the increase in the positive wave of PEPs following HFS would result from an enhanced pinprick-evoked phasic response of the locus coeruleus-noradrenergic system (LC-NS), indicated by enhanced PDRs. In 14 healthy volunteers, 64- and 96-mN pinprick stimuli were delivered to the left and right forearms, before and 20 minutes after HFS was applied to one of the two forearms. Both PEPs and pinprick-evoked PDRs were recorded. After HFS, pinprick stimuli were perceived as more intense at the HFS-treated arm compared with baseline and control site, and this increase was similar for both stimulation intensities. Importantly, the pinprick-evoked PDR was also increased, and the increase was stronger for 64- compared with 96-mN stimulation. This is in line with our previous results showing a stronger increase of the PEP positivity at 64 vs. 96-mN stimulation and suggests that the increase in PEP positivity observed in previous studies could relate, at least in part, to enhanced LC-NS activity. However, there was no increase of the PEP positivity in the present study, indicating that enhanced LC-NS activity is not the only determinant of the HFS-induced enhancement of PEPs. Altogether, our results indicate that PDRs are more sensitive for detecting CS than PEPs.

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Depositing User: Michelle Marshall

Identifiers

Item ID: 11325
Identification Number: https://doi.org/10.1152/jn.00816.2018
ISSN: 0022-3077
URI: http://sure.sunderland.ac.uk/id/eprint/11325
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.00816.2018

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Catalogue record

Date Deposited: 15 Nov 2019 16:24
Last Modified: 28 Apr 2020 12:47

Contributors

Author: E. N. van den Broeke
Author: D. M. Hartgerink
Author: Joe Butler
Author: J. Lambert
Author: A. Mouraux

University Divisions

Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellbeing
Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellbeing > School of Psychology

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