TY  - JOUR
AB  - The central processing of itch is not completely understood. This is the first study to use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine the central modulation by distraction of experimentally induced itch. A total of 33 healthy volunteers were examined with fMRI. Periods of itch induction without distraction and itch with distraction by a Stroop task (psychological test, where the participants have to decide if the colour of the writing corresponds to the written word, for example if ”red” is written in red or not) were counterbalanced during the scanning to examine task-specific changes in blood oxygenation level dependent-signal. The intensity of the subjects’ itch sensation, desire to scratch and pain sensation were evaluated. Distraction by a Stroop task did not reduce itch intensity or urge to scratch. However, the Stroop task led to significantly higher activation of the left brainstem when it followed the “pure” itch sensation. Itch and pain seem to have similar inhibition pathways, particularly concerning brainstem activation during distraction. But as itch sensation, in contrast to pain, could not be sufficiently reduced by distraction, both entities might have different modulation systems.
AU  - Stumpf, Astrid
AU  - Pfleiderer, Bettina
AU  - Schneider, Gudrun
AU  - Heuft, Gereon
AU  - Heuft, G.
AU  - Schmelz, Martin
AU  - Phan, Ngoc Quan
AU  - Ständer, Sonja
AU  - Burgmer, Markus
AU  - Burgmer, Markus Wilhelm
DA  - 2018-06-27
DO  - 10.2340/00015555-2732
KW  - fMRI
KW  - itch
KW  - scratch
KW  - pain
KW  - pain inhibition system
LA  - eng
N1  - Acta Dermato-Venereologica (2017) 97, 1074-1080
N1  - Finanziert durch den Open-Access-Publikationsfonds 2017 der Westfälischen Wilhelms-Universität Münster (WWU Münster).
PY  - 2018-06-27
TI  - Distraction From Itch Shows Brainstem Activation Without Reduction in Experimental Itch Sensation
UR  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hbz:6-06169568021
Y2  - 2024-11-22T02:08:15
ER  -