A study of 40 people with subacute back pain finds that people at risk of developing chronic back pain exhibit smaller volumes of the nucleus accumbens brain structure, compared with healthy controls, and that a loss of low-frequency fluctuations in the nucleus accumbens accompanies the transition from subacute to chronic pain; the researchers further used the loss of low-frequency fluctuations in the nucleus accumbens to accurately classify chronic low back pain patients who were imaged in two different laboratories, according to the study.
Article #19-18682: "Loss of nucleus accumbens low-frequency fluctuations is a signature of chronic pain," by Meena M. Makary et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Paul Geha, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY; e-mail: paul_geha@urmc.rochester.edu
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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences