What is the role of the spinal cord in placebo analgesia?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the role of the spinal cord in placebo analgesia, exploring the psychological factors influencing pain perception and the mechanisms behind placebo effects. Participants reference research findings and personal experiences related to pain management and the efficacy of placebos in different contexts.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants reference a study suggesting that placebo analgesia may involve reduced nociceptive processing in the spinal cord, indicating a psychological influence on pain perception.
  • Others question the effectiveness of placebos in certain conditions, such as trigeminal neuralgia, implying that the impact of placebos may vary based on the type of pain experienced.
  • A participant shares a personal account of chronic pain, suggesting that the perception of pain can persist despite receiving pain medication, raising doubts about the authenticity of pain in placebo responders.
  • There is a suggestion that some patients who respond to placebos might not be experiencing "real" pain, but rather imagined pain, which could affect the interpretation of placebo effects.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the effectiveness of placebos and the nature of pain perception, indicating that multiple competing perspectives remain unresolved in the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Some claims rely on specific definitions of pain and placebo effects, and there are unresolved questions regarding the mechanisms of pain perception and the psychological factors involved.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to those studying pain management, psychology, and the physiological mechanisms of placebo effects, as well as individuals experiencing chronic pain.

Pythagorean
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Direct Evidence for Spinal Cord Involvement in Placebo Analgesia
Falk Eippert, Jürgen Finsterbusch, Ulrike Bingel, Christian Büchel

Placebo analgesia is a prime example of the impact that psychological factors have on pain perception. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging of the human spinal cord to test the hypothesis that placebo analgesia results in a reduction of nociceptive processing in the spinal cord. In line with behavioral data that show decreased pain responses under placebo, pain-related activity in the spinal cord is strongly reduced under placebo. These results provide direct evidence for spinal inhibition as one mechanism of placebo analgesia and highlight that psychological factors can act on the earliest stages of pain processing in the central nervous system.

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/326/5951/404
 
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http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/news/20081023/50percent-of-doctors-give-fake-prescriptions"

I wonder what they charge for these treatments?
 
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Borg said:
http://www.webmd.com/pain-management/news/20081023/50percent-of-doctors-give-fake-prescriptions"

I wonder what they charge for these treatments?

I think you get 20% off on a placebo... :biggrin:
 
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so i guess placebos wouldn't have much effect on trigeminal neuralgia, then?
 
Pythagorean said:
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/326/5951/404
Have they considered that the patients that responded to placebos aren't actually suffering real pain, but that it's imagined?

I suffer from chronic pain, and believe me, I can tell when I have received pain medication. Sometimes I think I have taken pain meds and wonder why I am still in pain, then find my meds on a counter where I absent-mindedly laid them.

A good example was my recent surgery and the pain medication was adminstered through my IV. The nurse told me that I had received my pain medication, but the pain kept increasing, then they found out that the auto dispenser was turned off.