2023 Volume 31 Issue 1 Pages 14-20
In recent years, many studies have focused on central sensitization (CS) in chronic pain and various accompanying symptoms of unknown cause both in Japan and overseas. CS is an abnormality in the pain pathway from the body to the spinal cord, brainstem, thalamus, and cerebral cortex (primary somatosensory cortex), resulting in the perception of mild stimuli that are not normally painful as intensely painful stimuli with a spreading pain. Pain associated with central sensitization is hypersensitive to bright light, touch, noise, and temperature (low and high), and is often accompanied by fatigue, sleep disturbance, and difficulty in concentrating. Fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, temporomandibular joint disorder, restless legs syndrome, headache disorders, and other disorders are associated with central sensitization. On the other hand, knowledge of CS is not yet widespread in Japan. First, this article describes the relationship of central sensitization to the neurological disorders such as restless legs syndrome and migraine. Next, we reported the prevalence of symptoms and related factors of central sensitization based on epidemiological studies performed in the general population.
