ROLE OF BIOMECHANICS/NEURAL PLASTICITY IN RADICULAR PAIN

下腰痛的机制被认为涉及机械部件。然而，对神经组织的局部机械反应的了解还不完全，对于单个组织结构的机械负荷对于疼痛的发生和维持也没有明确的阈值。虽然目前用动物模型来研究神经根病，但这些模型对腰神经根、背根神经节~神经的损害程度仍然是定性的。本工作的主要目的是通过以下方法检测影响腰神经根病大鼠模型局部组织损伤的力学因素：(1)表征局部组织力学的时间进程以及负荷至腰神经根、背根神经节和脊神经的相关疼痛反应，(2)量化使用松动、紧密和镀铬肠线结扎腰神经根时机械和生理反应的差异，(3)确定启动和维持疼痛反应的压缩负荷阈值。机械组织变形数据将通过在受伤时和手术后的时间点进行成像来获取。年龄分析将用于确定特定组织成分的局部应变张量。组织桶将与机械性异位痛症和持续性疼痛的神经免疫介质相关。

The mechanism of low back pain is believed to involve a mechanical component. However, there is an incomplete understanding of the local mechanical response of neural tissue and no defined threshold of mechanical loading of individual tissue structures for pain onset and maintenance. While animal models are presently used to examine radiculopathy, the extent of damage to the lumbar nerve roots, dorsal root ganglia ~ nerves in these models remains solely qualitative in nature. It is the broad aim of this work to examine mechanical factors influencing local tissue injury in a rat model of lumbar radiculopathy by (1) characterizing the time course of local tissue mechanics and the associated pain response for loading to the lumbar nerve root, dorsal root ganglion, and spinal nerve, (2) quantifying the differences in mechanical and physiologic responses for ligation of the lumbar nerve root using loose, tight, and chromic gut sutures, (3) determining compression load thresholds for onset and maintenance of a pain response. Mechanical tissue deformation data will be acquired by imaging at the time of injury and at time points following surgery. age analysis will be used to determine the local strain tensor for particular tissue components. Tissue bins will be correlated with mechanical allodynia and neuroimmune mediators of persistent pain.