BACKGROUND
You can read about the research that informed the ACORN study below
The pre-registration sets out the overarching aims of the ACORN project. We also include the full ACORN protocol, with in-depth analysis plan and expected results.
This paper investigated how brain activity before surgery could help predict pain levels after major surgery. Researchers focused on the Alpha rhythm, which is a pattern of brain waves. Specifically, they measured the "Peak Alpha Frequency" (PAF), or the speed at which these waves occur. They found that a higher PAF (faster Alpha) before surgery was linked to lower levels of post-operative pain, while a lower PAF (slower Alpha) was associated with more pain. The study suggests that the brain’s Alpha rhythm can provide useful insight about how much pain someone might feel after surgery, based on their brain activity before the operation.
This study explored how brain activity patterns can predict how much pain a person might feel. Researchers used EEG to measure brain waves in the sensorimotor cortex, a region involved in sensing and movement. They focused on "alpha waves," which have a specific rhythm called the "peak alpha frequency" (PAF). They found that people whose alpha waves were slower when they were pain-free reported more intense pain during an experimental pain model. Additionally, the more their alpha waves slowed down during pain, the more intense their pain was. This suggests that measuring alpha wave speed could help predict who might be more sensitive to pain or at risk for chronic pain. It could also help doctors tailor treatments by providing an objective measure of pain intensity.
