Peripherally acting anti-CGRP monoclonal antibodies attenuate cortical resting-state connectivity in migraine patients.

Background: In about half of migraine patients, anti-calcitonin gene-related peptide monoclonal antibodies reduce monthly migraine days by >50%. In these patients, this class of drugs may change cortical functions by decreasing nociceptive afferent barrage. This prospective study investigated functional connectivity changes in treatment responders after three-month treatment with galcanezumab.

Emotional memory bias in adolescents with chronic pain: examining the relationship with neural, stress, and psychological factors.

Memory biases for pain-related information may contribute to the development and maintenance of chronic pain; however, evidence for when (and for whom) these biases occur is mixed. Therefore, we examined neural, stress, and psychological factors that could influence memory bias, focusing on memories that motivate disabling behaviors: pain perception, conditioned responses to threat-and-safety cues, and responses to aversive nonnoxious stimuli. Two studies were conducted with adolescents with and without chronic pain.

Probing white matter microstructure in youth with chronic pain and its relation to catastrophizing using neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging.

Chronic pain is common in young people and can have a major life impact. Despite the burden of chronic pain, mechanisms underlying chronic pain development and persistence are still poorly understood. Specifically, white matter (WM) connectivity has remained largely unexplored in pediatric chronic pain.

iVR-fNIRS: studying brain functions in a fully immersive virtual environment.

Immersive virtual reality (iVR) employs head-mounted displays or cave-like environments to create a sensory-rich virtual experience that simulates the physical presence of a user in a digital space. The technology holds immense promise in neuroscience research and therapy. In particular, virtual reality (VR) technologies facilitate the development of diverse tasks and scenarios closely mirroring real-life situations to stimulate the brain within a controlled and secure setting.