Low intensity trans-spinal focused ultrasound reduces mechanical sensitivity and suppresses spinal microglia activation in rats with chronic constriction injury.

ABSTRACT: Low intensity, trans-spinal focused ultrasound (tsFUS) is a noninvasive neuromodulation approach that has been shown to modulate spinal circuit excitability in healthy rats. Here, we evaluated the potential of tsFUS for alleviating neuropathic pain by testing it in a chronic constriction injury (CCI) model. Male rats underwent CCI of the left sciatic nerve and then received tsFUS (2 kHz pulse repetition frequency; 40% duty cycle) or sham stimulation, targeted at spinal segment level L5 for 3 min daily over three days. As expected, CCI causes significant reduction of von Frey Threshold (vFT), a measure of mechanical sensitivity. We found that tsFUS treatment is associated with increased vFT compared to sham; this increase persists beyond the duration of treatment, through days 4 to 23 post-

SUBMITTER: Song W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11956222 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature