Effects of motor cortex modulation and descending inhibitory systems on pain thresholds in healthy subjects.

Unlabelled: Pain modulation can be achieved using neuromodulatory tools that influence various levels of the nervous system. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), for instance, has been shown to reduce chronic pain when applied to the primary motor cortex. In contrast to this central neuromodulatory technique, diffuse noxious inhibitory controls (DNIC) refers to endogenous analgesic mechanisms that decrease pain following the introduction of heterotopic noxious stimuli.

Transcranial DC stimulation in fibromyalgia: optimized cortical target supported by high-resolution computational models.

Unlabelled: In this study we aimed to determine current distribution and short-term analgesic effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in fibromyalgia using different electrode montages. For each electrode montage, clinical effects were correlated with predictions of induced cortical current flow using magnetic resonance imaging-derived finite element method head model. Thirty patients were randomized into 5 groups (Cathodal-M1 [primary motor cortex], Cathodal-SO [supra-orbital area], Anodal-M1, Anodal-SO, and Sham) to receive tDCS application (2 mA, 20 minutes) using an extracephalic montage.