Spatiotemporal Thalamocortical Alterations Underlie Experimental and Chronic Pain

Investigators will pursue this goal in both experimental and clinical models at two sites (Florida State U/FSU & Mass General Hospital/MGH), implementing parallel enrollment of large and diverse samples (140 healthy participants and 60 patients with chronic low back pain/cLBP). Leveraging the fully developed multimodal neuroimaging methodology-simultaneous EEG-fMRI and combined EEG-MEG-fMRI, the investigators will investigate TC dysconnectivity (fMRI) and alpha dysrhythmia (EEG/MEG) during experimental pressure pain and chronic back pain.

Healthy subjects for both MGH and FSU sites

Inclusion criteria

• healthy male and female adults
• Between the ages of 18 and 60 years
• Meeting the MRI / MEG / EEG screening criteria
• Fluent in English; English can be a second language provided that the patients understand all questions used in the assessment measures. This will be asked and judged during the phone screen.

Exclusion criteria

• Current or past history of major medical, neurological, or psychiatric illness based on self-report
• History of cardiac, respiratory, or nervous system disease that, in the investigator's judgment, precludes participation in the study because of a heightened potential for adverse outcome (for example: asthma or claustrophobia)
• History of head trauma
• Pregnant or lactating
• Presence of any contraindications to MRI scanning (for example: cardiac pacemaker, metal implants, claustrophobia, pregnancy, cannot lie still in fMRI scanner)
• Conditions making study participation difficult (e.g., paralysis, psychoses, or other severe psychological problems as per the judgment of a study investigator during Session 1)
• Active substance abuse disorders (based on subject self-report)

Subjects with chronic low back pain (MGH site)

Inclusion criteria

• Volunteers 18-60 years of age
• Meet the Classification Criteria of the chronic LBP (having low back pain for more than 6 months)
• At least 4/10 clinical pain on the 0-10 LBP NRS
• Meeting the MRI / MEG / EEG screening criteria
• Fluent in English; English can be a second language provided that the patients understand all questions used in the assessment measures. This will be asked and judged during the phone screen.

Exclusion criteria

• Specific causes of back pain (eg, cancer, fractures, spinal stenosis, infections)
• Complicated back problems (eg, prior back surgery, medicolegal issues)
• The intent to undergo surgery during the time of involvement in the study
• Current or past history of major medical, neurological, or psychiatric illness based on self-report
• History of cardiac, respiratory, or nervous system disease that, in the investigator's judgment, precludes participation in the study because of a heightened potential for adverse outcome (for example: asthma or claustrophobia)
• History of head trauma
• Pregnant or lactating
• Presence of any contraindications to MRI scanning (for example: cardiac pacemaker, metal implants, claustrophobia, pregnancy, cannot lie still in fMRI scanner)
• Conditions making study participation difficult (e.g., paralysis, psychoses, or other severe psychological problems as per the judgment of a study investigator during Session 1)
• Active substance abuse disorders (based on subject self-report)
• Regular use of pain medication such as opioids, nonopioid analgesics, coanalgesics, corticosteroids, or immunomodulatory agents
• Current use of psychotropic medication