Mechanisms Underlying Alleviation of Pain

Dear Colleagues,

Pain is a complex, multidimensional sensory experience critical to our survival—protecting us from harm by alerting us of impending trauma or bodily injury. Although acute pain is adaptive in nature, pathological pain resulting from disease or injury is maladaptive in the long-term, when it becomes a chronic state. Both types of pain can be debilitating, negatively affecting millions of individuals worldwide, leading to impaired daily function and decreasing overall quality of life. Recent advances in the treatment of both acute and chronic pain has lifted this burden to some degree, with the development of novel pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment options, including analgesic substances, such as COX-2 and TNF-α inhibitors, as well as non-traditional therapeutic interventions for pain alleviation, such as neuromodulatory stimulation techniques, cognitive behavioral therapy, and acupuncture. However, the neurobiological mechanisms mediating these effects in the periphery and centrally, within the brain and spinal cord, are still a matter under intense investigation. The present call for papers invites contributions of original research and reviews to this Special Issue of Brain Sciences entitled “Mechanisms Underlying Alleviation of Pain”, the scope of which encompasses research germane to the advancement of our understanding of the neurobiology underlying pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches to pain relief for both acute and chronic, pathological pain states.

Dr. Catherine S. Hubbard
Guest Editor

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