Modulation of neural networks and symptom correlated in fibromyalgia: A randomized double-blind multi-group explanatory clinical trial of home-based transcranial direct current stimulation.

Background: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) might modulate neural activity and promote neural plasticity in patients with fibromyalgia (FM). This multi-group randomized clinical trial compared home-based active tDCS (HB-a-tDCS) on the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (l-DLPFC) or home-based sham tDCS (HB-s-tDCS), and HB-a-tDCS or HB-s-tDCS on the primary motor cortex (M1) in the connectivity analyses in eight regions of interest (ROIs) across eight resting-state electroencephalography (EEG) frequencies.

Methods: We included 48 women with FM, aged 30 to 65, randomly assigned to 2:1:2:1 to receive 20 sessions during 20 minutes of HB-a-tDCS 2mA or HB-s-tDCS, over l-DLPFC or M1, respectively.

Proposal of a screening instrument for autism spectrum disorder in children (Mini-TEA Scale).

Background:  Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) requires trained professionals for its adequate diagnosis. There is a shortage of such professionals in Brazil. Screening tools could identify priority cases.

High-beta oscillations at EEG resting state and hyperconnectivity of pain circuitry in fibromyalgia: an exploratory cross-sectional study.

Background: Electroencephalography (EEG) has identified neural activity in specific brain regions as a potential indicator of the neural signature of chronic pain. This study compared the lagged coherence connectivity between regions of interest (ROIs) associated with the pain connectome in women with fibromyalgia (FM) and healthy women (HC).

Methods: We evaluated 64 participants (49 FM and 15 HC) during resting-state EEG sessions under both eyes open (EO) and eyes closed (EC) conditions.

Peripheral body temperature rhythm as a marker of the severity of depression symptoms in fibromyalgia.

Background: Circadian rhythm alterations have been reported in fibromyalgia (FM) and depression. Peripheral body temperature (PBT) is a reliable measure of the circadian system, so we compared the PBT rhythm between persons with FM and controls. We evaluated PBT correlation with depression symptoms and pain severity in women with FM.

Primary somatosensory cortex and periaqueductal gray functional connectivity as a marker of the dysfunction of the descending pain modulatory system in fibromyalgia.

Background: Resting-state functional connectivity (rs-FC) may aid in understanding the link between pain-modulating brain regions and the descending pain modulatory system (DPMS) in fibromyalgia (FM). This study investigated whether the differences in rs-FC of the primary somatosensory cortex in responders and non-responders to the conditioned pain modulation test (CPM-test) are related to pain, sleep quality, central sensitization, and the impact of FM on quality of life.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 33 females with FM.