Development of a novel Perceptual Training intervention (PeTra) to improve pain in people with fibromyalgia

People with fibromyalgia suffer from widespread pain, exhaustion and other physical symptoms. Fibromyalgia affects about 5% of people and can cause major disability and distress. There are several treatments for fibromyalgia already, including drugs, physical therapy and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. However, up to 50% of people do not benefit very much from these treatments, or continue to have significant problems over time.

Research and theory suggests that fibromyalgia results from a central sensitisation process, in which normally innocuous sensory inputs trigger an exaggerated brain response. Work from our group and others suggests that this arises when the brain struggles to judge the strength of signals coming from the body, causing it to misinterpret normal signals as dangerous. This suggests that it should be possible to reduce pain in people with fibromyalgia by reversing this deficit in perceptual discrimination. The purpose of this PhD is to develop and begin to test a new treatment for fibromyalgia ("PeTra") that targets this deficit with an operant conditioning paradigm designed to train perceptual sensitivity. Our goals are to show that PeTra is safe, feasible to deliver and acceptable to people with fibromyalgia, and to obtain initial evidence that it has the expected effects on perceptual discrimination and pain in this group.

The successful candidate will begin by developing the PeTra paradigm and conduct experimental studies on healthy volunteers to optimise the training for clinical testing. They will then conduct a large experimental case series with fibromyalgia patients, using a multiple baselines design to test whether PeTra is safe, feasible and acceptable, and has a positive effect on pain and body perception.

Entry Requirements:
Applicants are expected to hold, or about to obtain, a minimum upper second class undergraduate degree (or equivalent) in psychology or neuroscience. A Masters degree in a relevant subject, experience in experimental psychology, neuroscience and/or chronic pain research, and/or experience of working with clinical populations are desirable but not essential.

For information on how to apply for this project, please visit the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health Doctoral Academy website (https://www.bmh.manchester.ac.uk/study/research/apply/). Informal enquiries may be made directly to the primary supervisor.On the application form select PhD Psychology.