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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 24, 2026

P50 Sensory Gating in Infants
12:55

P50 Sensory Gating in Infants

Published on: December 26, 2013

Is touch gating due to sensory or cognitive interference?

Daniel E Harper1, Mark Hollins

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA Department of Endodontics, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.

Pain
|March 17, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Touch gating, where pain reduces touch sensitivity, is a sensory interaction, not cognitive distraction. This pain-induced effect is stimulus-locked and independent of subjective pain intensity or psychological factors.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Somatosensory research
  • Pain perception

Background:

  • Touch gating, the reduction in tactile sensitivity during pain, is a known phenomenon.
  • Its underlying mechanism remains unclear, with theories suggesting either sensory or cognitive interference.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether touch gating results from sensory interference or cognitive processes like distraction.
  • To differentiate between stimulus-locked sensory interactions and cognitive modulation in pain perception.

Main Methods:

  • Touch gating was induced using a painful heat stimulus (45°C) applied to the palm during vibration threshold measurements.
  • The Stroop effect was measured as a control for cognitive interference.
  • Correlations with distractibility, fear of pain, hypervigilance, and anxiety were assessed.

Main Results:

  • Noxious heat significantly increased tactile vibration thresholds, confirming touch gating.
  • This interference persisted even as pain intensity habituated and was stimulus-locked.
  • Cognitive interference (Stroop effect) significantly declined across sessions, unlike touch gating.
  • Touch gating showed no correlation with psychological variables like anxiety or distractibility.

Conclusions:

  • Touch gating is a robust, stimulus-locked sensory interaction, not a transient cognitive effect.
  • The findings suggest a direct somatosensory mechanism for touch gating, independent of cognitive factors.