Brain neuroplastic changes accompany anxiety and memory deficits in a model of complex regional pain syndrome.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a painful condition with approximately 50,000 annual new cases in the United States. It is a major cause of work-related disability, chronic pain after limb fractures, and persistent pain after extremity surgery. Additionally, CRPS patients often experience cognitive changes, anxiety, and depression. The supraspinal mechanisms linked to these CRPS-related comorbidities remain poorly understood.

Methods

The authors used a previously characterized mouse model of tibia fracture/cast immobilization showing the principal stigmata of CRPS (n = 8 to 20 per group) observed in humans. The central hypothesis was that fracture/cast mice manifest changes in measures of thigmotaxis (indicative of anxiety) and working memory reflected in

SUBMITTER: Tajerian M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4175292 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature