Brain Imaging Study to Understand How Pain and Effort Feel Unpleasant in Adults With and Without Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying how the brain processes unpleasant sensations, such as pain and physical effort, in people with chronic overlapping pain conditions like myalgic encephalomyelitischronic fatigue syndrome MECFS and in healthy individuals. The study aims to identify specific brain regions involved in the unpleasantness felt during these sensations, focusing on a network called the subjective valuation network SVN. Participants will attend three visits over 1 to 5 weeks. At the first visit, they may undergo a neurological exam and practice tasks involving mild to moderate heat applied to the leg and squeezing a plastic bar with varying force. The second visit includes a real MRI scan. During the third visit, participants will repeat the thermal pain and physical effort tasks inside the MRI scanner while sensors measure muscle function and heart rate. Throughout the study, researchers will evaluate brain activity using functional MRI during these tasks, monitor heart rate by holding a finger against a camera lens, and assess muscle function. The main outcomes are identifying SVN regions linked to unpleasantness from pain and effort. Participants will be observed across these visits, with assessments completed within about one month after the first session.

Functional Neuroimaging to Detect the Neural Signatures of the Unpleasantness of Pain and Effort