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Updated: Jul 13, 2025
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Dynamic Quantitative Sensory Testing to Characterize Central Pain Processing
Published on: February 16, 2017
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Is conditioned pain modulation (CPM) affected by negative emotional state?
Claudia Horn-Hofmann1, Lena Jablonowski1, Melanie Madden1
1Department of Physiological Psychology, University of Bamberg, Bamberg, Germany.
European Journal of Pain (London, England)
|October 14, 2023
Summary
Fear induction did not alter conditioned pain modulation (CPM) of heat pain, suggesting thermal CPM is resistant to symbolic threat. Pain-related brain potentials showed CPM effects, unlike subjective pain ratings.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pain Research
- Psychophysiology
Background:
- Conditioned pain modulation (CPM) is an inhibitory reflex to noxious stimuli.
- Inadequate CPM efficiency is linked to clinical pain, prompting research into moderating factors.
- The influence of fear and anxiety on CPM remains under-explored despite evidence linking negative affect to enhanced pain.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of fear induction via symbolic threat on heat pain CPM.
- To determine if psychological states, specifically fear, modulate CPM responses.
Main Methods:
- Thirty-seven healthy participants underwent CPM with heat stimuli.
- Two blocks were used: high-threat (aversive burn wound images) and low-threat (neutral images).
- Subjective pain ratings and contact-heat evoked potentials (CHEPs) were measured.
Main Results:
- An overall inhibitory CPM effect was observed for CHEPs amplitudes, but not for subjective pain ratings.
- Despite successful threat induction, no modulation of CPM by the threat manipulation was found.
- Heat CPM appears resistant to this specific type of symbolic threat.
Conclusions:
- Symbolic threat induction did not significantly alter heat pain CPM.
- These findings suggest heat CPM is robust against certain types of emotional distress.
- Further research is needed to explore CPM's resistance to other fearful states and the differential sensitivity of subjective versus objective pain measures.
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