Laser stimulation for pain research

Stuart Clark; Mark Russell Dickinson; Terence A. King; Anthony Jones; Andrew Chen; Stuart Derbyshire; D. W. Townsend; Paul E. Kinahan; M. A. Mintun; T. Nichols

doi:10.1117/12.229532

8 January 1996 Laser stimulation for pain research

Stuart Clark, Mark Russell Dickinson, Terence A. King, Anthony Jones, Andrew Chen, Stuart Derbyshire, D. W. Townsend, Paul E. Kinahan, M. A. Mintun, T. Nichols

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 2629, Biomedical Optoelectronics in Clinical Chemistry and Biotechnology; (1996) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.229532
Event: BiOS Europe '95, 1995, Barcelona, Spain

Abstract

Pain is a serious medical problem; it inflicts huge economic loss and personal suffering. Pain signals are conducted via small, non- and partially myelinated A-delta and C nerve fibers and lasers are particularly well suited to stimulating these fibers. Large myelinated fibers convey touch and vibration information and these fibers are also discharged when contact thermodes and other touch pain stimuli are used and this would give a more muddled signal for functional imaging experiments. The advantages of lasers over conventional methods of pain stimulation are good temporal resolution, no variable parameters are involved such as contact area and they give very reproducible results. Accurate inter-stimulus changes can be achieved by computer control of the laser pulse duration, pulse height and repetition rate and this flexibility enables complex stimulation paradigms to be realized. We present a flexible carbon dioxide laser system designed to generate these stimuli for the study of human cerebral pain responses. We discuss the advantages within research of this system over other methods of pain stimulation such as thermal, electrical and magnetic. The stimulator is used in conjunction with functional magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography and electrophysiological methods of imaging the brain's activity. This combination is a powerful tool for the study of pain-induced activity in different areas of the brain. An accurate understanding of the brain's response to pain will help in research into the areas of rheumatoid arthritis and chronic back pain.

Citation Download Citation

Stuart Clark, Mark Russell Dickinson, Terence A. King, Anthony Jones, Andrew Chen, Stuart Derbyshire, D. W. Townsend, Paul E. Kinahan, M. A. Mintun, and T. Nichols "Laser stimulation for pain research", Proc. SPIE 2629, Biomedical Optoelectronics in Clinical Chemistry and Biotechnology, (8 January 1996); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.229532

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