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Research progress of magnetic resonance imaging technology in the neuromechanisms of chronic pain associated with pain-related emotions
ZHANG Renzhen  MA Cui  LU Hongyu  LI Li  DOU Tingting  MA Xuejiao  WEI Yuting  YAN Xingke 

DOI:10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.07.017.


[Abstract] Chronic pain is frequently accompanied by negative emotional disturbances such as depression and anxiety, and the interaction between pain and emotion forms a complex vicious cycle that imposes a substantial burden on both patients and society. At present, the clinical assessment of pain-emotion interaction mainly relies on subjective rating scales and symptomatic characteristics, which limits the understanding of its underlying neurobiological mechanisms and the development of precise interventions. In recent years, MRI has become an important noninvasive tool for investigating the central mechanisms of pain-emotion interaction because of its multiparametric imaging advantages. However, several limitations remain, including the lack of standardized individualized imaging thresholds, the limited ability of single-modality imaging to comprehensively characterize complex brain function, insufficient longitudinal causal studies, and inadequate validation in multicenter studies with large sample sizes. This review summarizes recent advances in the application of structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and brain perfusion/metabolic imaging techniques in chronic pain with pain-emotion interaction. Furthermore, future research directions are discussed, including the integration of machine learning and multicenter radiomics, the development of multimodal imaging fusion techniques, longitudinal follow-up studies, and the establishment of standardized imaging protocols. These advances may provide valuable imaging evidence for elucidating the neural mechanisms of chronic pain with pain-emotion interaction and for promoting precision clinical interventions.
[Keywords] chronic pain；pain-emotion interaction；structural magnetic resonance imaging；functional magnetic resonance imaging；cerebral perfusion/metabolic imaging；magnetic resonance imaging

ZHANG Renzhen1   MA Cui1, 2   LU Hongyu1   LI Li1   DOU Tingting1   MA Xuejiao1   WEI Yuting1   YAN Xingke1*  

1 Acupuncture and Tuina School, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China

2 Gansu Provincial Research Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China

Corresponding author: YAN X K, E-mail: yanxingke@126.com

Conflicts of interest   None.

Received  2026-03-27
Accepted  2026-06-06
DOI: 10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.07.017
DOI:10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.07.017.

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