Journal List > J Korean Med Assoc > v.52(2) > 1042125

Bai, Cho, and Lee: New Trend of Pain Study by Brain Imaging Devices

Abstract

The study of pain has recently received much attention, especially in understanding its neurophysiology by using new brain imaging techniques, such as positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), both of which allow us to visualize brain function in vivo. Also the new brain imaging devices allow us to evaluate the patient's pain status and plan to treat patients objectively. Functional activation of brain regions are thought to be reflected by increases in the regional cerebral blood flow in the brain imaging studies. Regional cerebral blood flow increases to noxious stimuli are observed in second somatic (SII) and insular regions and in the anterior cingulate cortex and with slightly less consistency in the first somatic area (S1), motor area, supplementary motor area, prefrontal area, amygdala and contralateral thalamus. These data suggest that pain has multidimensions such as sensory-discrimitive, motivational-affective and cognitive-evaluative.

Figures and Tables

Figure 1
Putative mechanisms involved in neurometabolic and neurovascular coupling during neuronal activation.
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Figure 2
Glucose utilization and fluoride deoxyglucose (FDG) in FDG PET.
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Figure 3
Positron annihilation coincidence photon detection.
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Figure 4
Glutamatergic synapse and blood flow increase.
EET: epoxy-eicosa-trienoic acids
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Figure 5
The signal pattern of fMRI.
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Figure 6
Putative pain pathway in the brain.
PFC: Prefrontal cortex, AMG: Amygdala, rACC: rostral Anterior cyngulate gyrus, dACC: dorsal Anterior cingulate gyrus, cACC: caudal Anterior cingulate gyrus, S1: Sensory area 1, S2: Sensory area 2, SMA: Supplementary motor area, HT: Hypothalamus, STT: Spinothalamic tract, SRT: Spinoreticular tract, SMT: Spinomesencephalic tract.
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Notes

This work was supported by the Korea Science and Engineering Foundation (KOSEF) grant funded by the Korea government (MEST)(R11-2005-014).

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