Investigating nociceptive neural responses under focused hypnotic analgesia: local and remote effects

Johnson, Amélie;Bourgy, Clara;Legrain, Valéry;et.al.
(2025) 14th Congress of the European Pain Federation EFIC — Location: Lyon (24.April.2025)

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Background and aims: Hypnoanalgesia refers to pain reduction using hypnotic suggestions. Among the different techniques, focused hypnoanalgesia (FHA) has attracted recent interest. Corresponding to the selective modulation of pain by inducing analgesia on a restricted body part [1], it is among other things used for wound care and surgical procedures. However, the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. The aim of this study is to investigate whether FHA can selectively modulate cortical responses to nociceptive stimuli originating from one body limb without affecting those from another limb. Methods: FHA was induced on one arm using the protective glove technique, while nociceptive stimulations were applied alternatively between the left and right forearms using contact heat stimuli. Intensity ratings and event-related brain potentials were measured in response to both stimuli before, during, and after FHA. Results: Behavioural measures show that FHA induces lower intensity perception for stimuli applied on the hypnotized arm compared to the other arm, while there are no differences before and after FHA. The selective effects are however short-lived. Electrophysiological results do not match behavioural responses, and show a decrease of amplitude of the N2-P2 complex across time points that is similar between the arms. Conclusion: The selective effect of FHA on intensity perception appears to be short-lived, diminishing with stimuli repetition. This transient nature may reflect either the inherently short duration of the effect or a generalization of the analgesic response across the body. Electrophysiological data did not match the behavioural modulation, suggesting that the selective changes in perception observed at the behavioural level are not captured at the electrophysiological one.
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Johnson, A., Bourgy, C., Legrain, V., & et al. (2025). Investigating nociceptive neural responses under focused hypnotic analgesia: local and remote effects. 14th Congress of the European Pain Federation EFIC, Lyon. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/272408