Centre for Pain IMPACT

RESEARCH CENTRE

INVESTIGATING MECHANISMS OF PAIN TO ADVANCE CLINICAL TRANSLATION

The Centre for Pain IMPACT, directed by A/Prof James McAuley, Dr Siobhan Schabrun, A/Prof Sylvia Gustin, and A/Prof David Seminowicz conducts research that encompasses basic science through to clinical and translational research.

Our research investigates the causes of chronic pain; develops and tests the efficacy and effectiveness of new treatment approaches; and implements new treatment approaches into clinical practice.

The research covers a range of conditions: low back pain, osteoarthritis, temporomandibular disorder, focal hand dystonia, headache, complex regional pain syndrome, migraine, burning mouth syndrome, sickle cell disease, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, spinal cord injury neuropathic pain, trigeminal neuropathic pain and trigeminal neuralgia.

Our team uses different research methods, including: animal (rodent) models, human models, neuroimaging, experimental methods (non-invasive brain stimulation, quantitative sensory testing), cohort studies, randomised controlled trials, implementation trials, and qualitative research.

The Centre also provides ongoing pain-related educational activities, including media, public lectures, clinical workshops, and seminars.

The overarching aims of IMPACT are to:

profile NeuRA’s world class pain research
facilitate collaboration within and beyond NeuRA
raise awareness of NeuRA’s pain activities by providing:
- a platform for research participant recruitment
- a forum for public and clinician education.
leverage expertise within NeuRA to seek external funding support (e.g. NHMRC CRE, industry, philanthropy).

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On August 11 2019, 54 people took on the City2Surf for Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA). The event is the world’s largest fun run with 80,000 participants taking on the 14km course, which stretches from Hyde Park in central Sydney to the iconic Bondi Beach. NeuRA thanks all of its fundraisers, who raised an incredible $30,903. This funding will further NeuRA’s […]

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Abdominal Functional Electrical Stimulation for Orthostatic Hypotension in Spinal Cord Injury

Spinal cord injury (SCI) results in the loss of function to not only voluntary motor control, but also to the regulatory systems that control bodily processes. Orthostatic (postural) hypotension (OH) is a common clinical feature in SCI patients, affecting up to 73% of patients with cervical spine and upper thoracic spine injuries during mobilisation and postural changes. This often results in symptoms of dizziness, light-headedness, fatigue and confusion, in turn limiting individual participation in physical rehabilitation and restricting progress towards regaining function and independence. Therapeutic interventions are centred around ameliorating symptoms of OH; however, options for patients remain limited. Non-pharmacological treatments have had little success at treating hypotension in the long-term, while pharmacological interventions are used only when necessary as they may contribute to hypertension and even worsen episodes of autonomic dysreflexia, a life-threatening condition. Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) is one of the only interventions that has been shown to display some benefit in improving OH. Recently, stimulation of the lower limbs has been shown to acutely increase blood pressure in patients with SCI. Our recent projects have involved the use of FES applied over the abdominal muscles, termed abdominal FES, for SCI patients at risk of respiratory complications with promising results. As this same population is at risk of orthostatic hypotension, this study aims to determine whether abdominal stimulation can also be used to help this condition. Based on our previous research, we believe that abdominal FES will increase blood pressure acutely during an orthostatic challenge in individuals with acute spinal cord injury, allowing for a longer time spent in a standing position. This will facilitate more effective rehabilitation, therefore improving quality of life and decreasing associated medical complications.

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