Stress-Induced Allodynia – Evidence of Increased Pain Sensitivity in Healthy Humans and Patients with Chronic Pain after Experimentally Induced Psychosocial Stress - full text

Abstract

Background

Experimental stress has been shown to have analgesic as well as allodynic effect in animals. Despite the obvious negative influence of stress in clinical pain conditions, stress-induced alteration of pain sensitivity has not been tested in humans so far. Therefore, we tested changes of pain sensitivity using an experimental stressor in ten female healthy subjects and 13 female patients with fibromyalgia...."

Conclusions

Our results provide evidence for stress-induced allodynia/hyperalgesia in humans for the first time and suggest differential underlying mechanisms determining response to stressors in healthy subjects and patients suffering from chronic pain. Possible mechanisms of the interplay of stress and mediating factors (e.g. cytokines, cortisol) on pain sensitivity are mentioned. Future studies should help understand better how stress impacts on chronic pain conditions.

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0069460

Short on time? Use our Category Search page.