People with chronic back pain process everyday sounds differently, and more intensely, than people without pain, according to new research. The study is one of the first to tie this sound hypersensitivity to specific, measurable changes in the brain, indicating that chronic back pain affects far more than the back. The researchers compared self-reported and neural responses in 142 adults with chronic back pain relative to 51 pain-free controls. All participants, including controls, underwent brain imaging.

During the MRI session, the researchers had participants do several tasks, such as listen to sounds while the researchers asked participants how unpleasant the sounds felt and measured how strongly key brain regions responded. The differences between chronic pain patients and healthy controls were large. The researchers found on average; they reacted more strongly than 84% of people without pain.

These findings validate what many patients have been saying for years that everyday sounds genuinely feel harsher and more intense. Their brains are responding differently, in regions that process both the loudness of sound and its emotional impact. This tells us chronic back pain isn’t just about the back. There’s a broader sensory amplification happening in the brain.

Hands-on, opioid free chiropractic care has been proven over years of research to be an effective, long-lasting approach to reducing, and in many cases, eliminating chronic back pain. We now know that a wonderfully beneficial side-effect of such chiropractic care for many sufferers is making everyday surroundings so much more pleasant.

Presented as a service to the community by: Union County Chiropractic Clinic, 110 Skyline Drive, Maynardville, TN (865) 992-7000 www.unioncountychiropractic.com