摘要
Functional gastrointestinal disorders are commonly encountered in clinical practice, and pain is their commonest presenting symptom. In addition, patients with these disorders often demonstrate a heightened sensitivity to experimental visceral stimulation, termed visceral pain hypersensitivity that is likely to be important in their pathophysiology. Knowledge of how the brain processes sensory information from visceral structures is still in its infancy. However, our understanding has been propelled by technological imaging advances such as functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Positron Emission Tomography, Magnetoencephalography, and Electroencephalography （EEG）. Numerous human studies have non-invasively demonstrated the complexity involved in functional pain processing, and highlighted a number of subcortical and cortical regions involved. This review will focus on the neurophysiological pathways （primary afferents, spinal and supraspinal transmission）, brainimaging techniques and the influence of endogenous and psychological processes in healthy controls and patients suffering from functional gastrointestinal disorders. Special attention will be paid to the newer EEG source analysis techniques. Understanding the phenotypic differences that determine an individual＇s response to injurious stimuli could be the key to understanding why some patients develop pain and hyperalgesia in response to inflammation/injury while others do not. For future studies, an integrated approach is required incorporating an individual＇s psychological, autonomic, neuroendocrine, neurophysiological, and genetic profile to define phenotypic traits that may be at greater risk of developing sensitised states in response to gut inflammation or injury.
Functional gastrointestinal disorders are commonly encountered in clinical practice, and pain is their commonest presenting symptom. In addition, patients with these disorders often demonstrate a heightened sensitivity to experimental visceral stimulation, termed visceral pain hypersensitivity that is likely to be important in their pathophysiology. Knowledge of how the brain processes sensory information from visceral structures is still in its infancy. However, our understanding has been propelled by technological imaging advances such as functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Positron Emission To-mography, Magnetoencephalography, and Electroen-cephalography (EEG). Numerous human studies have non-invasively demonstrated the complexity involved in functional pain processing, and highlighted a number of subcortical and cortical regions involved. This review will focus on the neurophysiological pathways (primary afferents, spinal and supraspinal transmission), brain- imaging techniques and the influence of endogenous and psychological processes in healthy controls and patients suffering from functional gastrointestinal dis- orders. Special attention will be paid to the newer EEG source analysis techniques. Understanding the pheno- typic differences that determine an individual's response to injurious stimuli could be the key to understanding why some patients develop pain and hyperalgesia in response to inflammation/injury while others do not. For future studies, an integrated approach is required incorporating an individual's psychological, autonomic, neuroendocrine, neurophysiological, and genetic prof ile to def ine phenotypic traits that may be at greater risk of developing sensitised states in response to gut in? am- mation or injury.
基金
Supported by A Medical Research Council Career Establi-shment Award and the Rosetrees Trust
