Additional considerations for studying brain metabolite levels across pain conditions using proton magnetic resonance
Yenisel Cruz-Almeida1, Eric Porges2
1Pain Research & Intervention Center of Excellence, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida; Department of Community Dentistry & Behavioral Science, College of Dentistry, University of Florida, PO BOX 112610, Gainesville, FL 326010, Florida; Center for Cognitive Aging and Memory, McKnight Brain Foundation, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida; Department of Neuroscience, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Abstract:
Advances in proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) allow for the non-invasive examination of neuroinhibitory and neuroexcitatory processes in humans. In particular, these methods have been used to understand changes across chronic pain conditions. While a recent meta-analysis supports the idea that underlying brain metabolite levels may be unique to different pain conditions and may serve as biomarkers for specific pain conditions, the lack of consideration of differential brain aging processes across heterogenous pain conditions introduces a significant source of bias. Future studies need to address the interactions between pain and brain aging across different MRS metabolite measures.
