Background
What do we already know about this topic?
- Endogenous analgesia (EA) is the complex system modulating pain perception with descending control from various parts of the brainstem, acting on the wide dynamic range of neurons in the trigeminal complex and dorsal horn of the spinal cord. 1,2
- Dysfunctional EA is a risk factor for developing pain and Conditioned Pain Modulation (CPM) is the human experimental model used to measure EA.
- Studies on migraine being associated with deficient pain modulation have been inconsistent due to a lack of standardized CPM methodology, and have mainly studied CPM in episodic migraine, not chronic migraine, where the role of CPM is largely unknown.
How was this study conducted?
- Baseline CPM in patients meeting the International Classification of Headache Disorders, 3rd edition, (ICHD-3) criteria for chronic migraine (aged 18–65 years) will be compared to healthy age/sex-matched controls, using a recommended CPM testing method.3
- Calcitonin gene-related peptide monoclonal antibody (CGRP mAb) and remote electrical neuromodulation (REN) wil be used to assess CPM in response to migraine therapeutics.
- CPM response will be correlated with clinical response and assessed for predictive value.