Regions of the brain involved with the interpretation of the pain

Abstract

Introduction: A series of electrochemical events called nociception occur between the tissue damage and the perception of pain.  They include four neurophysiological processes known as: transduction, transmission, perception, and modulation.  Objective:   To provide up-to-date information about the regions of the brain involved with the interpretation of pain.

Material and Method: A bibliographic review was carried out with the aim of clarifying the interpretation of the nociceptive signal.  Thirty-five scientific articles were consulted, and a total of twenty-nine were chosen due to their direct relationship with the aim of the search, twenty-three of which correspond to the last five years of publication in national and international journals.

Development: Nociceptive axons are classified as Aδ and C, and participate in the conduction of action potential of the peripheral nervous system (PNS). The transmission of the signal in the form of action potential is decoded in areas related to cognoscitive, affective, and emotional aspects, and the behavioral area of pain. This dissimilar group of structures is recognized at present as the brain matrix of pain.  Conclusions: The “pain matrix” corresponds to brain areas such as SI and SII somatosensory cortices, implied in the discriminative aspect of pain. Both the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the anterior insular cortex (AIC) are associated with the emotional and affective component of pain.

Keywords: nociception, neocortex, “pain matrix”, tissue damage.