Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology
-
Chronic tension-type headache (CTTH) affects 3% of the population. Directly and indirectly it causes high costs and considerable loss of quality of life. The mechanisms of this disorder are poorly understood and the treatment possibilities are therefore limited. The blink reflex (BR) reflects neuronal excitability due to nociceptive input in the brainstem. The aim of this study was to investigate nociceptive processing at the level of the brainstem in an experimental pain model of CTTH symptoms. ⋯ A combined homotopic and heterotopic effect of the conditioning pain onto the blink reflex could account for this finding.