Figure 5

Basal Ganglia Function in Acute and Chronic Pain. Top: Acute Pain Processing is a normal response where pain produces responses in brain circuits that usually revert to normal. Some of these processes are integrated in the BG and result in escape responses: components of memory and learning of pain and affective responses to pain. Bottom: In chronic pain both inputs from peripheral systems and cortical and subcortical regions are abnormal. The result is that BG functions as well as cortico-BG-thalamic loop functions are altered. The result may be altered integration of sensori-motor responses, cognitive impairment and emotional processing.