Cerebral blood flow dynamics during pain processing in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome.

Objectives: Increased cerebral blood flow during processing of acute pain has repeatedly been observed in fibromyalgia syndrome. The study investigated the time dynamics of the pain-related hemodynamic response in fibromyalgia using transcranial Doppler sonography.

Methods: In 25 women with fibromyalgia and 25 healthy participants, blood flow velocities in the anterior and middle cerebral arteries of both hemispheres were recorded, while heat stimuli of 45°C were applied to their forearms.

Cerebral blood flow dynamics during pain processing investigated by functional transcranial Doppler sonography.

Objective: Functional transcranial Doppler sonography (fTCD) enables reliable quantification of cerebral blood flow modulation during neural activation processes. Its high-time resolution, relatively simple technical arrangement, and low costs could make fTCD a useful tool in the investigation of brain activity underlying pain experience in fundamental and clinical research. The present pilot study explored the suitability of this technique to investigate cerebral hemodynamics during the processing of experimental heat pain.