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The Culture of Research: “A Shocking Portrait” Calls for Immediate Change

A Wellcome Trust study documents a plethora of widespread issues, including career insecurity, bullying and harassment, sexism and mental health issues. Pain investigators who spoke to PRF said these problems apply to the pain research environment too.

by Kayt Sukel on 24 Feb 2020

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What is it like to be an academic researcher today, according to researchers themselves?

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In the Search for New Drugs, the Migraine Field Wins the Day ─ Again

Based on results from two recent clinical trials, the US Food and Drug Administration approves ubrogepant, a CGRP receptor antagonist, for acute migraine treatment

by Lincoln Tracy on 3 Feb 2020

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The pain field has seen its share of disappointment on the drug development front, to the point where the so-called “failure of translation” has become an unavoidable cliché. But…

Drug Development

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A New Clinical Trial Shows Clear Benefits of TENS for Fibromyalgia ─ Finally!

Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation reduces pain from movement and fatigue

by Stephani Sutherland on 27 Jan 2020

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Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) has been used to treat various forms of chronic pain for decades, yet studies investigating the benefits of this intervention for pain have failed…

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Nav1.7 Channels in DRG Neurons: Where Are They and How Do They Get There?

A new study provides the first live visualization, with single-molecule resolution, of Nav1.7 distribution and trafficking along primary afferents, from the soma to the distal axon

by Dara Bree on 21 Jan 2020

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The sodium channel Nav1.7 is a key regulator of the firing of nociceptive neurons, and mutations in this channel can result in pain conditions as well as insensitivity to…

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Providers’ Expectations Directly Transmit Placebo Effects to Patients via Facial Expressions

A new study shows that social transmission of placebo effects via subtle facial cues decreases experimental heat pain

by Kayt Sukel on 16 Jan 2020

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For decades, scientists have tried to understand why some people experience the placebo effect, a positive outcome from an inert drug or other inactive treatment. This is often attributed…

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Biased Opioid Agonists Isolated From an Australian Fungus

Core tetrapeptide backbone of bilorphin could serve as a structural framework for future compounds

by Stephani Sutherland on 6 Jan 2020

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Major efforts are underway to develop new opioid drugs that relieve pain without dangerous adverse effects. One strategy relies on biased agonism—a term that describes preferential activation of one…

Drug Development

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A Newly Identified Scorpion Toxin Targets TRPA1

A cell-penetrating peptide from the venom of the Australian black rock scorpion activates TRPA1 to cause pain but not neurogenic inflammation

by Francie Moehring on 17 Dec 2019

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Transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1) is an ion channel expressed by many primary afferent sensory neurons. Allyl isothiocyanate (AITC), a pungent chemical that gives wasabi and mustard oil…

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Let the Countdown Begin: The Top 10 PRF News Stories and Papers of the Year—and the Decade

News stories on pain classification and pain definition come out on top in 2019

by PRF Team on 16 Dec 2019

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With a new year soon to begin, it’s an opportune time to take a look back at the most popular content on PRF over the past 12 months. It’s also…

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Going in Opposite Directions: The Role of the Amygdala in Pain

A new study shows pro- versus antinociceptive roles for distinct populations of neurons in the central nucleus of the amygdala

by Fred Schwaller on 10 Dec 2019

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The role of the amygdala in pain has been closely considered by pain researchers for decades. The results have been somewhat contradictory: Recent research has mostly found pronociceptive contributions…

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A New Mechanism of Medication-Overuse Headache

A mouse study reveals that nitric oxide maladaptively activates Nav1.9 channels in a medication-overuse headache model

by Lincoln Tracy on 4 Dec 2019

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It is a cruel irony that the same drugs used to treat migraine headache can themselves cause headache. But the underlying causes of this phenomenon, known as medication-overuse headache…

Drug Development

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A Brain Pathway for Headache Pain Aversiveness

A new study identifies a circuit from the periaqueductal gray to the ventral tegmental area that encodes aversiveness in a rat model of headache

by Kayt Sukel on 18 Nov 2019

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Pain, including migraine pain, can be associated with sensory changes. It can also be an extremely unpleasant experience. But while the sensory characteristics of migraine pain have been examined…

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I Want to Hold Your Hand (to Ease the Pain)

New study shows that romantic partner touch reduces pain intensity and unpleasantness, and engages sensory and emotional brain regions, in female volunteers

by Dara Bree on 11 Nov 2019

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The supportive touch of a romantic partner can have enormous benefits in coping with stressful, threatening, and especially painful situations. To date, the evidence in favor of a role…

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What Makes a DRG Neuron a DRG Neuron?

Researchers use RNA sequencing to generate transcriptome profiles of different DRG neuronal subtypes, which account for the distinct physiological properties of the cells

by Fred Schwaller on 5 Nov 2019

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Peripheral sensory neurons are classified based on characteristics such as anatomical structure, physiological responses to stimuli, and expression of gene markers. In a further attempt at classification, a new…

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A New Role for Lysozyme in Neuropathic Pain

Evidence from rodent and human tissues shows that increased lysozyme expression after nerve injury causes neuronal excitability and pain-like behavior

by Dara Bree on 28 Oct 2019

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Lysozyme, a bacteria-gobbling enzyme commonly known for its role in fighting infections as part of the innate immune system, may serve a previously unrecognized role in facilitating chronic pain…

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If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try, Try Again: An Improved Strategy to Treat Itch

Converging evidence from mouse models and human sensory neurons points to the spinal cord receptor NPR1 as a potential treatment target for itch

by Lincoln Tracy on 15 Oct 2019

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Everyone knows how unpleasant itch can be, and the relief that comes from scratching. But when it comes to the causes of itch, while acute itch is commonly associated…

Drug Development

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Pain Nerve Endings: “Bare” No More

Nociceptive Schwann cells in the skin are an active player in pain sensation

by Stephani Sutherland on 14 Oct 2019

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For the past century, dogma has held that unmyelinated nociceptive sensory neurons have “bare” or “free” nerve endings that extend into the epidermis where they detect harmful stimuli directly,…

Research

“Everybody Has Won and All Must Have Prizes”: Dodo Birds in Psychological Treatments for Chronic Pain

Do different psychological interventions that alleviate pain work through similar or unique mechanisms?

by Lincoln Tracy on 2 Oct 2019

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Editor’s note: The following is a summary of the Professor Tess Cramond Named Lecture from the Australian Pain Society 39th Annual Scientific Meeting, which took place from April 7…

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The Mouse Pain Scale: A More Reliable and Unbiased Way to Assess Animal Behavior in Pain Research

New approach uses high-speed videography, statistical modeling, and machine learning to identify pain- versus non-pain-related behaviors

by Francie Moehring on 24 Sep 2019

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Pain is a complex experience that differs from person to person, which makes it challenging to measure objectively in humans. It’s even more difficult to do so in rodents,…

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Immune Receptor TLR4 Mediates Hyperalgesia Caused by Opioids

Opioids sensitize pain at sensory neurons

by Stephani Sutherland on 17 Sep 2019

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Opioids provide powerful relief from pain, but their many serious side effects include a paradoxical increase in pain, a phenomenon referred to as opioid-induced hyperalgesia (OIH), in patients and…

Research

A Causal Role for Long-Term Potentiation in Chronic Pain

A new mouse study reveals the importance of microglia in spinal LTP resulting from electrical stimulation of the sciatic nerve

by Dara Bree on 13 Sep 2019

Chronic pain has long been associated with peripheral nerve damage or local inflammation. However, chronic pain often has no clinically obvious cause. A new study proposes that long-term potentiation…

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A New Proposed Definition of Pain

After nearly 18 months of collaboration, the IASP Definition of Pain Task Force is suggesting a new definition to better reflect current knowledge

by Kayt Sukel on 5 Sep 2019

The International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) Definition of Pain Task Force has proposed an update to the organization’s official definition of pain to help better guide…

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A View of Pain as a Physical Sense to Avoid Harm—And What It Means for Psychological Treatments

“It is an exciting time to be a pain psychologist,” says Christopher Eccleston. “We have amazing interventions for psychological treatment of pain currently.”

by Perri Tutelman on 3 Sep 2019

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Editor’s note: The 17th IASP World Congress on Pain took place September 12-16, 2018, in Boston, US. At the Congress, 12 early-career pain researchers took part in the PRF Correspondents Program, a science communications…

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After a New Clinical Trial, Where Is Anti-NGF Treatment for Pain Headed?

Results support the efficacy of tanezumab for osteoarthritis pain, but joint safety remains a concern

by Kayt Sukel on 21 Aug 2019

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There are no effective treatments to prevent or reverse osteoarthritis (OA), a progressive, degenerative condition where joint cartilage, joint structures, and underlying bone come under attack. Nor are there…

Drug Development

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Pain Insensitivity Observed in Multiple African Mole Rat Species

New study builds upon previous work in naked mole rats by identifying additional species with pain insensitivity to capsaicin, acid, and AITC

by Dara Bree on 15 Aug 2019

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The naked mole rat—unsightly in appearance, unconventional in its habitat, and unusual in its physiology—has been a boon to pain researchers, who have spent the past decade investigating the…

Research

From a Spider Venom to an Analgesic in Mice

At the 2019 annual gathering of the Australian Pain Society, Glenn King described how research on spider venoms could lead to a better understanding of pain mechanisms and new treatments

by Lincoln Tracy on 7 Aug 2019

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Editor’s note: The following is a summary of the John Bonica Named Lecture delivered at the Australian Pain Society 39th Annual Scientific Meeting. John Bonica—widely regarded as the founding…

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Advances in Understanding Migraine: New Mechanisms and Innovative Translational Models

A headache symposium at the 2019 American Pain Society Scientific Meeting highlighted emerging areas of research in the field

by Francie Moehring on 16 Jul 2019

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Migraine is the second most disabling condition worldwide, trailing only low back pain, yet it remains neglected as a field of research.

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The Missing Link Between Disinhibition and Excitation in the Spinal Cord During Chronic Pain: Taking a STEP Forward

Converging evidence from rodent and human tissue points to the phosphatase STEP61 as a hub of dorsal horn pain processing

by Neil Andrews on 15 Jul 2019

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Spinal cord pain processing is a complicated phenomenon involving different neurobiological mechanisms and molecular players. Dorsal horn disinhibition spurred by brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and excitation mediated by NMDA…

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Newly Discovered Microcircuitry Between the Thalamus and Anterior Cingulate Cortex Controls Pain-Related Aversion

Optogenetics reveals complexity of the system, challenges current views

by Stephani Sutherland on 9 Jul 2019

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The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has long been known as a key node in processing affective components of pain in animals and people. But little is known about the…

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Emotional Mirror Neurons Respond to Pain in Self and Others

Cells in the rat anterior cingulate cortex encode felt and observed pain

by Stephani Sutherland on 1 Jul 2019

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The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), a fold of brain tissue tucked just atop the corpus callosum at the center of the brain, has become known as a hotbed of…

Research

Wow, That’s FAAH-OUT: Newly Discovered Genetic Mutations in a Woman Who Feels No Pain

Co-inheritance of FAAH SNP and microdeletion in novel pseudogene termed FAAH-OUT identified in a woman with insensitivity to pain

by Dara Bree on 20 Jun 2019

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Genetic mutations that produce congenital insensitivity to pain (CIP) have sparked enormous interest in the pain field in the last decade as they offer enticing clues about the pathophysiology…

Research

Spontaneous Firing in DRG Neurons From Patients With Neuropathic Pain

Two studies of human transcriptome also bolster evidence for sex differences

by Stephani Sutherland on 13 Jun 2019

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Women suffer from chronic pain conditions at much higher rates than men do, and they report higher pain than men. Researchers are hard at work studying the biological underpinnings…

Research

Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide Causes Migraine-Like Pain in Female But Not Male Rodents

Sexually dimorphic response to dural CGRP may explain why migraines are more prevalent in women

by Francie Moehring on 3 Jun 2019

Comment

Migraine is a complex condition that causes more disability than all other neurological disorders combined. Characterized by an extreme throbbing headache, increased sensitivity to light, touch, and sound, nausea…

Research

Kappa Opioid System in Nucleus Accumbens Drives Pain-Induced Negative Affect

Rodent study reveals that disinhibition of dynorphin-containing neurons explains reduced motivation seen during inflammatory pain

by Dara Bree on 23 May 2019

Comment

Pain is more than a physical sensation. For many people, it extends beyond the sensory “ouch” and is associated with negative affective states, including anxiety, depression, and reduced motivation.…

Drug Development

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A Search for Blood Biomarkers of Pain

A recent study identifies a number of blood gene expression biomarkers that predict pain in psychiatric patients; findings also point to new treatment avenues

by Lincoln Tracy on 6 May 2019

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Pain is a subjective experience that cannot be directly measured or quantified. This has spurred the pain field’s search for biomarkers: molecules, genes, or other biological factors that could…

Research

Not All Pain Is the Same: Characterizing the Extent of High-Impact Chronic Pain

Epidemiological findings highlight the need for patient-centered care

by Stephani Sutherland on 23 Apr 2019

Comment

Chronic pain exacts a huge toll on patients, healthcare systems, and the economy. But the way that chronic pain is typically defined—by how long it lasts—provides little information about…

Research

A Worldwide Scientific and Policy Response to the Problem of Chronic Pain

At the 2018 World Congress on Pain, plenary speaker Fiona Blyth said it’s time to address the impact of pain on the global burden of disease

by Alisa Johnson on 18 Apr 2019

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Pain Research Leaders Convene to Chart a Path to Pain Biomarkers

An objective measure of chronic pain could improve treatment and translation

by Stephani Sutherland on 11 Apr 2019

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Physicians have at their disposal a battery of tests to measure heartrate, blood pressure, and temperature—objective, quantifiable indicators of disease. But no such biomarkers exist yet for chronic pain.…

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Pain-in-a-Dish Expands the Nav1.7 Research Menu

Two new studies use sensory neurons derived from induced pluripotent stem cells to examine the pain mechanisms of inherited erythromelalgia and congenital insensitivity to pain

by Neil Andrews on 1 Apr 2019

When it comes to the experimental tools that researchers use to understand pain at the cellular and molecular level, dorsal root ganglion neurons from animals—and more recently from human…

Drug Development

Research

Probing the Intersection of Sleep and Pain with Brain Imaging

Sleep loss leads to increases in activity in the somatosensory cortex and decreases in the insula, thalamus, and nucleus accumbens

by Stephani Sutherland on 25 Mar 2019

Comment

Patients and doctors alike know that sleep and pain present something of a vicious cycle: Pain makes sleeping difficult, and losing sleep makes pain worse. But the brain mechanisms…

Research

How the Brain Distinguishes Different Types of Touch

A new study in healthy volunteers shows significant differences in brain processing of self-produced versus other-touch

by Kayt Sukel on 19 Mar 2019

Comment

Open any college neuroscience textbook to the chapter on sensory perception and you’ll quickly learn that you can’t tickle yourself, no matter how hard you try (and chances are,…

Research

Removing Damaged Nerves: A Potential Role for Natural Killer Cells in Neuropathic Pain

NK cells degenerate injured axons and may help to reduce pain from nerve injury in mice

by Dara Bree on 12 Mar 2019

Comment

Damage to peripheral nerves sets in motion a series of events that facilitate the removal of neuronal debris following Wallerian degeneration and promote the regeneration of axons. But this…

Research

A Neural Ensemble in the Amygdala Makes Pain Unpleasant

A new mouse study identifies a brain circuit in the basolateral amygdala that encodes the affective but not somatic aspects of pain

by Francie Moehring on 7 Mar 2019

Comment

The experience of pain includes both sensory and affective components. Pain researchers have learned a lot about the former—about the peripheral mechanisms by which noxious stimuli are transduced into…

Research

Pain in a Social Context

Symposium at 2018 IASP World Congress on Pain in Boston highlighted how social interactions affect pain perception in rodents and people

by Dara Bree on 28 Feb 2019

Comment

Pain researchers are increasingly turning their attention to the social component of the biopsychosocial model of pain. At the 2018 IASP World Congress on Pain in Boston, in a…

Conferences

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A Neural Pathway for Soothing Sustained Pain

New research puts forth spinal TAC1-lineage neurons as responsible for behaviors that help mice “cope” with painful stimuli; exactly what those behaviors represent, and relevance of findings to chronic pain, remain uncertain

by Dara Bree on 20 Feb 2019

Comment

The response to a painful stimulus generally consists of two phases: a quick withdrawal from the stimulus, followed by behaviors such as rubbing or licking of the injured area…

Research

Male Mice—and Men—Remember the Pain

Stress-dependent “pain memory” seen only in males, according to a new study of conditioned pain hypersensitivity

by Stephani Sutherland on 11 Feb 2019

Comment

As preclinical pain research increasingly includes both female and male animals, sex differences in pain are becoming more and more apparent. New work from Jeffrey Mogil, McGill University, Montreal,…

Research

A New Classification of Chronic Pain for Better Patient Care and Research

IASP Working Group classification system developed for inclusion in latest revision of World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases, offering promise to improve pain management, research and policy

by Kayt Sukel on 4 Feb 2019

Comment

Editor's Note: Since publication of this article, WHO adopted ICD-11, including the new classification system for chronic pain developed by the IASP Task Force. Read the IASP press release…

Research

How Antidepressants Ease Neuropathic Pain

A new study identifies a dual noradrenergic mechanism to explain the anti-allodynic effect of acute versus chronic antidepressant treatment

by Kayt Sukel on 28 Jan 2019

Comment

For decades, antidepressants have been a first-line treatment for neuropathic pain. Yet how these drugs function at the cellular and molecular level to produce analgesia is not well understood,…

Drug Development

Research

Hippocampal Extracellular Matrix Modulates Chronic Pain and Related Memory Deficits

Mouse study suggests matrix metalloproteinase 8 as potential drug target

by Stephani Sutherland on 14 Jan 2019

Comment

The vast majority of pain research focuses on neurons, and to a much lesser extent glia, but new research now shows that the extracellular matrix (ECM), the supportive milieu…

Research

Year in Review: The Top 10 News Stories and Papers of the Week on PRF in 2018

News story on the third mechanistic descriptor of chronic pain, review article on failures in translation come out the winners

by PRF Staff on 17 Dec 2018

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A new year is on the doorstep, but before saying goodbye to 2018, it’s a great time to look back at PRF’s coverage of pain research over the past year. From…

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The Role of Expectations in the Pain Response

New research in healthy participants shows how expectancy effects can make pain a self-fulfilling prophecy

by Dara Bree on 17 Dec 2018

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Past experiences shape our expectations about the future, and those expectations can simultaneously affect how we experience new events. Sometimes this can result in a self-fulfilling prophecy where people…

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The IASP Pain Research Forum is a publication of the International Association for the Study of Pain