HHS Public Access Author manuscript Author Manuscript
Pain Med. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2016 June 09. Published in final edited form as: Pain Med. 2016 June ; 17(6): 1037–1048. doi:10.1093/pm/pnv014.
Minority Aging and Endogenous Pain Facilitatory Processes Hailey W. Bulls, M.A.1,*, Burel R. Goodin, Ph.D.1,2, Myriah McNew, B.A.1, Ethan W. Gossett, B.A.1, and Laurence A. Bradley, Ph.D.1,3 1University
of Alabama at Birmingham, Department of Psychology
2University
of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, Division of Pain Medicine
Author Manuscript
3University
of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, Division of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology
Abstract Objective—The aim of the current study was to examine the relationships among age, ethnicity, and endogenous pain facilitation using temporal summation (TS) responses to mechanical and heat stimuli.
Author Manuscript
Design—The present study assessed hyperalgesia and pain facilitation to thermal and mechanical stimuli at the knee and distal sites in 98 pain-free men and women. Participants were drawn from two ethnic (African-Americans, AA; and non-Hispanic whites, NHW) and age groups (19-35 and 45-85). Results—Significant main effects of ethnicity were demonstrated for both mechanical and heat modalities (all p’s≤0.05), suggesting that AA participants, relative to NHW counterparts, demonstrated enhanced hyperalgesia. Age differences (older > younger) in hyperalgesia were found in mechanical pain ratings only. Results indicated that mechanical pain ratings significantly increased from first to maximal pain as a function of both age group and ethnicity (all p’s≤0.05), and a significant ethnicity by age interaction for TS of mechanical pain was found at the forearm (p
Pain Med. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2016 June 09. Published in final edited form as: Pain Med. 2016 June ; 17(6): 1037–1048. doi:10.1093/pm/pnv014.
Minority Aging and Endogenous Pain Facilitatory Processes Hailey W. Bulls, M.A.1,*, Burel R. Goodin, Ph.D.1,2, Myriah McNew, B.A.1, Ethan W. Gossett, B.A.1, and Laurence A. Bradley, Ph.D.1,3 1University
of Alabama at Birmingham, Department of Psychology
2University
of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, Division of Pain Medicine
Author Manuscript
3University
of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, Division of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology
Abstract Objective—The aim of the current study was to examine the relationships among age, ethnicity, and endogenous pain facilitation using temporal summation (TS) responses to mechanical and heat stimuli.
Author Manuscript
Design—The present study assessed hyperalgesia and pain facilitation to thermal and mechanical stimuli at the knee and distal sites in 98 pain-free men and women. Participants were drawn from two ethnic (African-Americans, AA; and non-Hispanic whites, NHW) and age groups (19-35 and 45-85). Results—Significant main effects of ethnicity were demonstrated for both mechanical and heat modalities (all p’s≤0.05), suggesting that AA participants, relative to NHW counterparts, demonstrated enhanced hyperalgesia. Age differences (older > younger) in hyperalgesia were found in mechanical pain ratings only. Results indicated that mechanical pain ratings significantly increased from first to maximal pain as a function of both age group and ethnicity (all p’s≤0.05), and a significant ethnicity by age interaction for TS of mechanical pain was found at the forearm (p
