Traumatic Long-term Memory of Pain in Humans

Few studies have focused on understanding the mechanisms underlying pain memory in humans. Thus, this project aims to investigate the link between pain memorisation and memorisation of the associated context by addressing the issue of pain conditioning. The study is composed of two successive parts: one pilot then one experimental. The goal is to understand pain memorisation processes by analysing the parallel between pain memorisation and memorisation of a traumatic event. By using immersive virtual reality, investigators aim to show that contextual pain conditioning is associated with : 1- a specific neural networks; 2- a reactivation of vegetative and behavioural reactions related to pain as well as electro-physiological markers when re-exposure to the specific pain-conditioning-context; 3- an implicit hypermnesia of the pain-associated context and a struggle to extinguish conditioning; 4- a favoured elaboration of false memories of the contextual pain. The emitted hypothesis suggests that a cortical and behavioural mnemonic trace is created during encoding of pain in association with its context, and that the latter can reactivate although the pain itself has disappeared. This implicit cortical mnemonic trace, evoked by the simple pain-associated context, could explain the notion of pain print persisting at long-term in patients suffering from chronic pain.