Aberrant functional connectivity and temporal variability of the dynamic pain connectome in patients with low back related leg pain

Neuroimaging studies have suggested a link between the intensity of chronic low back pain intensity and structural and functional brain alterations. However, chronic pain results from the coordination and dynamics among several brain networks that comprise the dynamic pain connectome. Here, we use resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging and measures of static (sFC) and dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) variability in the typical (0.01–0.1 Hz) and five specific (slow-6 to slow-2) frequency bands to test hypotheses regarding disruption in this variability in low back-related leg pain (LBLP) patients who experience chronic pain and numbness. Twenty-four LBLP patients and 23 healthy controls completed clinical assessments, and partial correlational analyses between altered sFC and dFC variability and clinical measures were conducted. We found a lower within-network sFC in the ascending nociceptive pathway (Asc) and a lower cross-network sFC between nodes of the salience network and the Asc in the typical frequency band. In the slow-5 frequency band, a lower within-network sFC was found in the Asc. Abnormal cross-network sFC was found between nodes of the salience network-Asc (slow-5 and slow-6) and the default mode network-Asc (slow-4 and slow-6). Furthermore, cross-network abnormalities in the typical and certain specific frequency bands were linked to clinical assessments. These findings indicate that frequency-related within- and cross-network communication among the nodes in the dynamic pain connectome is dysfunctional in LBLP patients and that selecting specific frequencies may be potentially useful for detecting LBLP-related brain activity.