In Infants, Pain from Vaccinations Shows Up in Brain Activity

A study conducted by the University College London, published in the journal PAIN, depicts innovative use of brain-wave technology attempting to understand the pain reception in infants during inoculation. Using electroencephalography (EEG) to monitor brain waves, researchers studied 15 healthy and medically normal infants as they received routine vaccinations, both during one-to-two month vaccinations and those taking place one year after birth. By syncing EEG scans with videos taken of the infants during the procedure, exact facial cues and body language was examined to determine the relationship to electrical activity in the brain. Ultimately, no correlation could be found between body reactions and EEG waves, thus rendering inconclusive results. The author explained, “Cortical EEG activity…shows that the noxious stimulus is being processed in the brain, with some individual variability, but is not necessarily a direct read-out of the amount of pain perceived.” Future research hopes to use this brain wave technique to analyze the development of pain responses in infants and study how the nervous system changes throughout the growth process. To learn more about this study, click here.