Temporal association between changes in primary sensory cortex and corticomotor output during muscle pain

BackgroundIntegration of information between multiple cortical regions is thought to underpin the experience of pain. Yet studies tend to focus on pain related changes in discrete cortical regions. Although altered processing in the primary motor (M1) and sensory cortex (S1) is implicated in pain, the temporal relationship between these regions is unknown and may provide insight into the interaction between them.MethodsWe used recordings of somatosensory-evoked potentials (SEPs) and transcranial magnetic stimulation to investigate the temporal relationship between altered excitability of the primary sensory cortex and corticomotor output during and after muscle pain induced by hypertonic saline infusion into the right first dorsal interosseous. SEPs and motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) were recorded in 12 healthy individuals.ResultsParticipants reported an average pain intensity of 5.4 (0.5) on a 10-cm visual analogue scale. The area of the N20–P25–N33 complex of the SEP was reduced during and after pain, but MEP amplitudes were suppressed only after pain had resolved.ConclusionsOur data show that pain reduces sensory processing before motor output is altered. This temporal dispersion, coupled with the lack of correlation between pain-induced changes in S1 and M1 excitability, imply either that independent processes are involved, or that reduced excitability of S1 during acute experimental muscle pain mediates latent reductions in motor output via processes that are non-linear and potentially involve activation of a wider brain network.

► Pain involves integration of information between multiple brain regions.
► Individually, S1 and M1 excitability is altered by pain.
► Altered S1 excitability occurs prior to changes in corticomotor output.
► Provides insight into the relationship between cortical regions involved in pain.