Abstract
BackgroundPatients with migraine often have impaired somatosensory function and experience headache attacks triggered by exogenous stimulus, such as light, sound or taste. This study aimed to assess the influence of three controlled conditioning stimuli (visual, auditory and gustatory stimuli and combined stimuli) on affective state and thermal sensitivity in healthy human participants.MethodsAll participants attended four experimental sessions with visual, auditory and gustatory conditioning stimuli and combination of all stimuli, in a randomized sequence. In each session, the somatosensory sensitivity was tested in the perioral region with use of thermal stimuli with and without the conditioning stimuli. Positive and Negative Affect States (PANAS) were assessed before and after the tests. Subject based ratings of the conditioning and test stimuli in addition to skin temperature and heart rate as indicators of arousal responses were collected in real time during the tests.ResultsThe three conditioning stimuli all induced significant increases in negative PANAS scores (paired t-test, P ≤0.016). Compared with baseline, the increases were in a near dose-dependent manner during visual and auditory conditioning stimulation. No significant effects of any single conditioning stimuli were observed on trigeminal thermal sensitivity (P ≥0.051) or arousal parameters (P ≥0.057). The effects of combined conditioning stimuli on subjective ratings (P ≤0.038) and negative affect (P = 0.011) were stronger than those of single stimuli.ConclusionsAll three conditioning stimuli provided a simple way to evoke a negative affective state without physical arousal or influence on trigeminal thermal sensitivity. Multisensory conditioning had stronger effects but also failed to modulate thermal sensitivity, suggesting that so-called exogenous trigger stimuli e.g. bright light, noise, unpleasant taste in patients with migraine may require a predisposed or sensitized nervous system.
Highlights
Patients with migraine often have impaired somatosensory function and experience headache attacks triggered by exogenous stimulus, such as light, sound or taste
Migraine patients complain of headache attacks with increased sensitivity to e.g. light or sound
The perception of migraine headache is uniquely exacerbated during exposure to ambient light as compared with the pain level perceived in the dark [8]
Summary
Patients with migraine often have impaired somatosensory function and experience headache attacks triggered by exogenous stimulus, such as light, sound or taste. Migraine patients complain of headache attacks with increased sensitivity to e.g. light or sound. The disorder is considered as a disturbance in the brain of the subcortical aminergic sensory modulatory systems [1]. Overall, these observations could indicate that the migrainous brain does not habituate to signals in a normal way [2,3,4]. Human perception of food flavor and texture during consumption involves taste, intraoral somatosensory function (thermal and mechanical), vision, olfaction, and auditory signals that contribute to the overall appreciation of food. The perception of migraine headache is uniquely exacerbated during exposure to ambient light as compared with the pain level perceived in the dark [8]
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