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The somatosensory temporal discrimination threshold changes after a placebo procedure

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Abstract

In a recent study, we showed that tactile perception can be enhanced by applying a placebo manipulation consisting of verbal suggestion and conditioning (Fiorio et al., Neuroscience 217:96–104, 2012). Whether this change in perception is related to a better tactile functioning is still unknown. Aim of this study is to investigate whether placebo-induced enhancement of tactile perception results in better somatosensory temporal discrimination threshold (STDT), as a proxy of tactile acuity. To this purpose, a group of subjects (experimental group) was verbally influenced and conditioned about the effect of an inert cream in enhancing tactile perception, while a control group was informed about the real nature of the cream. In both groups, we measured STDT before and after cream application, by means of pairs of electrical stimuli delivered on the index fingertip and separated by ascending inter-stimulus intervals. STDT was defined as the shortest time interval at which the two stimuli were perceived as separated. Results revealed an increase in subjective perception of stimulus intensity and a reduction of STDT only in the experimental group. This study proves that a placebo procedure, consisting of verbal suggestion and a short conditioning, can reduce the temporal discrimination threshold.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Marialuisa Maiorano and Alessandro Zizza for help in data collection.

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Via Casorati, 43, 37131, Verona, Italy

    Mirta Fiorio, Mehran Emadi Andani, Serena Recchia & Michele Tinazzi

  2. Multifunctional Center “Don Calabria”, Verona, Italy

    Serena Recchia

Authors
  1. Mirta Fiorio
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  2. Mehran Emadi Andani
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  3. Serena Recchia
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  4. Michele Tinazzi
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Correspondence to Mirta Fiorio.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Written informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interests.

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Fiorio, M., Emadi Andani, M., Recchia, S. et al. The somatosensory temporal discrimination threshold changes after a placebo procedure. Exp Brain Res 236, 2983–2990 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-018-5357-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-018-5357-5

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