Pharmacological neuroimaging in headache and pain

TY - JOUR

T1 - Pharmacological neuroimaging in headache and pain

AU - Kröger, Inga L

AU - May, Arne

PY - 2013/6/1

Y1 - 2013/6/1

N2 - PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The current review gives an overview about recent advances in neuroimaging studies with specific emphasis on pharmacological modulation of pain and headache. Further, we want to highlight how imaging methods have changed our understanding of chronic pain and discuss how pharmacological MRI could lead to new insights into underlying mechanisms of headache and pain.RECENT FINDINGS: Several studies from different imaging laboratories have highlighted the outstanding role of imaging in getting a deeper insight regarding the central mechanisms of drugs. Neuroimaging techniques start to unravel how analgesic drugs, antidepressants or NSAIDs act on pain perception and in particular on central pain processes. Furthermore, the studies included in this review show how context dependent drugs act and how differently they reveal their action in the human brain.SUMMARY: Imaging techniques give us the opportunity to gain a better understanding of drug processes in the central nervous system and help to understand where drugs reveal their therapeutic effect. While some substances work on the emotional-affective component of pain, others modulate sensory-discriminative pain pathways. Especially in the field of headache research, still a lot has to be done to understand how preventatives and acute medication modulate the human brain. Future studies should also replicate and extend recent findings.

AB - PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The current review gives an overview about recent advances in neuroimaging studies with specific emphasis on pharmacological modulation of pain and headache. Further, we want to highlight how imaging methods have changed our understanding of chronic pain and discuss how pharmacological MRI could lead to new insights into underlying mechanisms of headache and pain.RECENT FINDINGS: Several studies from different imaging laboratories have highlighted the outstanding role of imaging in getting a deeper insight regarding the central mechanisms of drugs. Neuroimaging techniques start to unravel how analgesic drugs, antidepressants or NSAIDs act on pain perception and in particular on central pain processes. Furthermore, the studies included in this review show how context dependent drugs act and how differently they reveal their action in the human brain.SUMMARY: Imaging techniques give us the opportunity to gain a better understanding of drug processes in the central nervous system and help to understand where drugs reveal their therapeutic effect. While some substances work on the emotional-affective component of pain, others modulate sensory-discriminative pain pathways. Especially in the field of headache research, still a lot has to be done to understand how preventatives and acute medication modulate the human brain. Future studies should also replicate and extend recent findings.

KW - Analgesics

KW - Animals

KW - Brain

KW - Headache

KW - Humans

KW - Neuroimaging

KW - Pain

U2 - 10.1097/WCO.0b013e32836085df

DO - 10.1097/WCO.0b013e32836085df

M3 - SCORING: Journal article

C2 - 23511443

VL - 26

SP - 254

EP - 261

JO - CURR OPIN NEUROL

JF - CURR OPIN NEUROL

SN - 1350-7540

IS - 3

ER -