Cited by 149Pain Mechanisms and TreatmentsPain Management and TreatmentPain Management and Placebo Effect

Effects of diffuse noxious inhibitory controls on temporal summation of the RIII reflex in humans

Open access
Serrao, Mariano, Rossi, Paolo, Sandrini, Giorgio, Parisi, Leoluca, Amabile, Giuseppe Amadio, Nappi, Giuseppe, Pierelli, Francesco·2004·Pain

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of diffuse noxious inhibitory controls (DNICs) on the temporal summation of the nociceptive flexion reflex (RIII reflex) in humans. Recordings were obtained from 36 healthy adults (16 M, 20 F), and the area and temporal summation threshold (TST) of the RIII reflex were measured. The subjective intensity of the painful sensation was rated on an 11-point visual analogue scale (VAS). Neurophysiological and VAS measurements were recorded after activation of DNICs by means of the cold pressor test (CPT), which involved immersing the hand in cold water (2-4 degrees C). A slight significant lower TST was found in the females versus the males. In all the subjects, the CPT induced a significant TST increase and RIII area reduction compared with the control session. The VAS results paralleled those of the RIII reflex area and TST. During the CPT, a significant difference in the percentage TST increase emerged between females and males, being lower in the former. Similarly, we found a significantly lower percentage reduction of the RIII area in women than in men during the CPT. To summarize, activation of DNICs through the CPT significantly increased the TST of the RIII reflex in healthy subjects. This inhibitory effect was gender-specific. Whereas other findings are based on psychophysical evaluations, the results of this experimental study provide an objective neurophysiological demonstration that DNICs attenuate temporal summation in humans and confirm the presence of significant differences in pain modulation mechanisms between men and women.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1016/j.pain.2004.09.018

Cites

60 of 60 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Recomputing p-values needs the paper’s full text.

Claims the paper makes

The text we found for this paper looks like another document, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The text we found for this paper looks like another document, so the self-check wasn’t run.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Serrao, M., Rossi, P., Sandrini, G., Parisi, L., Amabile, G. A., Nappi, G., & Pierelli, F.
Affiliations
  • University of Pavia (IT)
  • Sapienza University of Rome (IT)
  • Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo (IT)
Corresponding author
Sandrini, Giorgio
Venue
Pain
Published
2004-12
Volume
112
Issue
3
Pages
353-360
ISSN
0304-3959 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2042189317
Cited by
149
References
59
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 4 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 13 · 2012: 10
FWCI
3.29
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Pain (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • IRIS Research product catalog (Sapienza University of Rome) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Pain Mechanisms and Treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine › Pain Management and Treatment
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Pain Management and Placebo Effect
Keywords
diffuse noxious inhibitory control, temporal summation, RIII reflex, nociceptive flexion reflex, cold pressor test, pain modulation, sex differences, pain perception
MeSH terms
Adult, Analysis of Variance, Conditioning, Psychological, Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation, Electric Stimulation, Female, Humans, Male, Neural Inhibition, Neuropsychological Tests, Nociceptors, Pain, Pain Measurement, Physical Stimulation, Psychophysics, Random Allocation, Reflex, Pain Threshold

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review