Topical Concurrent Session 2D – Translating knowledge of neuroscience & clinical characteristics of chronic headache into practice

Description

The global burden of disease study urged future research to focus on understanding new mechanisms that explain chronic headache persistence and treatment responsiveness. In this session we bring together a team comprising a neuroscientist, biochemist/ MR physicist together with our clinician – researcher physiotherapists. We will discuss our recent studies that have investigated; i) brain biomarkers using advanced neuroimaging (fMRI and MRS) and ii) clinical characteristics (neck muscle function and pain sensitivity) and their association with headache persistence and recovery. Discussion and examples of how this knowledge can be translated into clinical practise will be provided using case studies. The session will conclude with a panel discussion.

A/Prof Trudy Rebbeck (specialist musculoskeletal physiotherapist) will provide a brief overview of chronic headache and migraine and introduction of case studies to flow through the session.

Prof Luke Henderson (neuroscientist) will discuss work in advanced neuroimaging and evidence of brain changes, consistent with the hypothesis that endogenous analgesic circuits changes, are critical for migraine generation.

Prof Graham Galloway (biochemist and MR physicist ) will discuss neurospectroscopy which offers a window into the biochemical tissue profile, to identify aberrant neurochemistry. Elevated GABA+ in patients experiencing chronic pain, including migraine and level variations may allow stratification to identify responders to new therapies.

Dr Julia Treleaven (musculoskeletal physiotherapist) will present on the clinical characteristics and how to identify different causes of neck pain in migraine. Together with neuroscience outcomes this knowledge may facilitate understanding of different mechanisms of neck pain in recurrent headache.

To close the session A/Prof Trudy Rebbeck will summarise the relationship between brain neurochemistry and clinical characteristics and provide real examples of clinical translation in the management of chronic headache.

The session will end with a 30 minute interactive panel discussion regarding the future to help identify treatment responders and/ or understand central and peripheral drivers of the headache experience.

Speakers:
A/Prof Trudy Rebbeck, University of Sydney, NSW
Professor Luke Henderson, University of Sydney, NSW
Professor Graham Galloway, University of Queensland, QLD
Dr Julia Treleaven, University of Queensland, QLD