Neuroimaging of Fibromyalgia

Functional MRI blood oxygenation level dependent activation studies on patients who have fibromyalgia have demonstrated augmented sensitivity to painful pressure and the association of this augmentation with variables such as depression and catastrophizing and have also been used to evaluate the symptoms of cognitive dysfunction. Using a wide array of techniques, these studies have found differences in opioid receptor binding, in the concentration of metabolites associated with neural processing in pain-related regions, in functional brain networks, and in regional brain volume and white matter tracks. A common theme of all of these methods is that they provide information that may be pertinent to the otherwise unobservable and poorly treated symptoms of persistent widespread chronic pain.