The effect of experimenter gender on autonomic and subjective responses to pain stimuli

Aslaksen, Per M.; Myrbakk, Ingvild Nordnes; Høifødt, Ragnhild Sørensen; Flaten, Magne Arve

doi:10.1016/j.pain.2006.10.011

Cited by 162 publications

(147 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…It is important to document as much of the experimental testing situation as possible. For example, experimenter (or clinician) sex should always be reported, as this variable may influence pain report in the laboratory (e.g., [14,76,94,125]) and in the clinic [133]. Other relevant factors to document include: (1) a detailed description of instructions to subjects and the training they received prior to data collection; (2) the history of subjects' pain experiences; and (3) the history of subjects' experience with similar experimental studies.…”

Section: What Types Of Pain Tests Are Appropriate? Human Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Studying sex and gender differences in pain and analgesia: A consensus report

Greenspan

Craft

LeResche

et al. 2007

Pain

846

633

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In September 2006, members of the Sex, Gender and Pain Special Interest Group of the International Association for the Study of Pain met to discuss the following: (1) what is known about sex and gender differences in pain and analgesia; (2) what are the "best practice" guidelines for pain research with respect to sex and gender; and (3) what are the crucial questions to address in the near future? The resulting consensus presented herein includes input from basic science, clinical and psychosocial pain researchers, as well as from recognized experts in sexual differentiation and reproductive endocrinology. We intend this document to serve as a utilitarian and thought-provoking guide for future research on sex and gender differences in pain and analgesia, both for those currently working in this field as well as those still wondering, "Do I really need to study females?" Keywords Sex differences; Gonadal hormones; Estrogens The case for studying sex and gender differences in pain and analgesiaThe pain field has moved from debating whether sex differences in pain exist to recognizing the importance of these differences. Attention is now directed toward understanding (1) what conditions lead to the expression of sex and gender differences in pain experience and reactivity, (2) what mechanisms underlie these differences, and (3) how these differences can inform clinical management of pain.As noted in a recent review, at least 79% of animal studies published in Pain over the preceding 10 years included male subjects only, with a mere 8% of studies on females only, and another 4% explicitly designed to test for sex differences (the rest did not specify) [142]. Given the substantially greater prevalence of many clinical pain conditions in women vs. men [20,199], and growing evidence for sex differences in sensitivity to experimental pain and to analgesics [21,41,213], we recommend that all pain researchers consider testing their hypotheses in both sexes, or if restricted by practical considerations, only in females. It is invalid to assume that data obtained in male subjects will generalize to females, and the best non-human model of the modal human pain sufferer -a woman -is a female animal. If only males are examined in a given study, it is important that a rationale for exclusion of females be provided and that the potential limitation in generalizability of the findings be addressed in the discussion, particularly when examining a pain phenomenon that occurs with greater prevalence or severity in females. In both preclinical and clinical studies, a comparison of both sexes will further our understanding of individual differences in sensitivity to pain and analgesia, thus improving our ability to treat and prevent pain in all people. General considerationsTwo issues of terminology are important. First, the term "sex" refers to biologically based differences, while the term "gender" refers to socially based phenomena. Although biological sex exerts a major influence on one's gender identity, sex and gender a...

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Section: What Types Of Pain Tests Are Appropriate? Human Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Studying sex and gender differences in pain and analgesia: A consensus report

Greenspan

Craft

LeResche

et al. 2007

Pain

846

633

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…It is established that the fear emotion can stimulate a fight-or-flight response, activate the sympathetic system, stimulate the secretion of adrenaline, and increase the HR, i.e., increase sympathetic and decreased parasympathetic activities (Aslaksen et al, 2007). In this study, the fear-invoking audio story stimulated the fight-or-flight response through the activated sympathetic system; subsequently, we electro-acupunctured at PC5 and PC6 on the scared subjects and found that a higher RMSSD and HF was produced, indicating that PC5 and PC6 electro-acupuncture could activate the parasympathetic system.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electro-Acupuncture at Jianshi (Pc5) and Neiguan (Pc6) Alters Heart Rate Variability (Hrv) in Frightened Volunteers

Huang¹,

Zheng²,

Zhang³

et al. 2017

AJTCAM

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Background: Fear is one of the most widely studied emotions and is closely associated with the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Previous studies have proven that acupuncture directly impacts the ANS, influences the heart rate (HR) and the heart rate variability (HRV) and exerts other effects. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of Jianshi (PC5) and Neiguan (PC6) electro-acupuncture on HRV during fear-invoking auditory stimulation using an Actiheart ECG recorder. Materials and Methods:Two hundred healthy subjects were recruited. Using a random number table, subjects were grouped for exposure to fear-invoking auditory stimulation (n=40) or neutral auditory stimulation (n=40). After determining that our fear-invoking auditory stimulation produced the fear emotion, the other 120 subjects were similarly divided into an electro-acupuncture (EA group) and a control group that received PC5 and PC6 electro-acupuncture or no intervention. Results:The fear score of the fear-invoking auditory group was significantly higher than that of the neutral auditory group. The EA group showed higher SD, RMSSD, and high frequency (HF) components of HRV than those of the control group. Conclusion:The primary result suggests that PC5 and PC6 electro-acupuncture affects cardiac autonomic neural regulation, mainly via the parasympathetic system, in subjects exposed to fear-invoking auditory stimulation.

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“…All experimenters (2 males, 2 females) were clinical psychology students with experience in performing experimental laboratory testing. The gender of the experimenters was balanced to reduce the influence of experimenter gender effects (Aslaksen et al 2007). The experimenters worked in pairs consisting of one male and one female to minimize experimenter gender-related effects.…”

Section: Designmentioning

confidence: 99%