Detailed contribution information
| Contribution title | ThermoPy: A new tool to assess pain sensitivity using a PsychoPy-controlled cold-/hot-plate |
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| Contribution code | D2.033 |
| Authors | |
| Form of presentation | Poster |
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| Abstract |
Aims: Research suggests that pain sensitivity may play a role in adolescent psychopathology, but findings are mixed and partly hard to compare. We present ThermoPy, a ready-for-use open-source PsychoPy-based tool to assess pain sensitivity based on thermal pain induction. The tool facilitates the computation of a variety of established and additional new measures of different components of pain sensitivity in one experimental setting. Methods: ThermoPy communicates with a cold-/hot-plate to start and stop a previously programmed temperature ramp. Possible variations of the ramp include successive heating or cooling and holding a specific temperature constant. A touchscreen single slider is used to assess self-ratings of pain sensation on a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). Participants put, for example, a hand on the plate and provide self-ratings on the VAS using the other hand. The tool continuously records timestamped actual temperatures and self-ratings. In addition, hand contact force is recorded to provide an objective assessment of hand-plate contact during the experiment. Results and conclusions: We present how to employ the tool, extract data, and derive relevant measures of pain sensation (e.g., pain threshold, intensity, and tolerance). We suggest including measures of hand contact force to increase reliability of other measures and consider immediate physiological or behavioral responses to a pain stimulus. We present data from pilot testing and discuss how users can adapt the tool for individual research purposes. ThermoPy is an easy-to-implement tool facilitating reliable pain sensitivity assessment and may help advance knowledge on the role of pain physiology in adolescent psychopathology. |