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Impact on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Analysis of institutional authors

Suñol, MariaCorresponding AuthorLopez-Sola, MarinaCorresponding Author

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January 27, 2026
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Reduced Cortico-Cortical Resting-State Connectivity in Sensory Systems Related to Bodily Pain in Juvenile Fibromyalgia

Publicated to: Arthritis & Rheumatology. 76 (2): 293-303 - 2023-12-21 76(2), DOI: 10.1002/art.42691

Authors:

Sunol, Maria; Dudley, Jon; Payne, Michael F; Tong, Han; Ting, Tracy V; Kashikar-Zuck, Susmita; Coghill, Robert C; Lopez-Sola, Marina
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Affiliations

Cincinnati Childrens Hosp Med Ctr, Cincinnati, OH USA - Author
Rush Univ, Med Ctr, Chicago, IL USA - Author
Univ Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain - Author
Univ Cincinnati, Coll Med, Cincinnati, OH USA - Author
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Abstract

Objective. Juvenile-onset fibromyalgia (JFM) is a paradigmatic chronic pain condition for which the underlying neurobiological substrates are poorly understood. This study examined, for the first time, data-driven resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) alterations in 37 female adolescents with JFM compared with 43 healthy female adolescents and identified associations with bodily pain.Methods. Whole-brain voxel-wise rsFC alterations were assessed using the intrinsic connectivity contrast, a measure of node centrality at each voxel, and seed-based analyses for interpretability. We studied the relationship between rsFC alterations in somatosensory systems and the location and extension of bodily pain.Results. Adolescents with JFM had voxel-wise rsFC reductions in the paracentral lobule (PCL)/primary somatosensory cortex (S1) (T = 4.89, family-wise error corrected p-value (pFWE) < 0.001) and left midcingulate cortex (T = 4.67, pFWE = 0.043). Post hoc analyses revealed reduced rsFC spanning major cortical sensory hubs (T > 4.4, pFWE < 0.030). Cortico-cortical rsFC reductions within PCL/S1 in JFM occurred in locations innervated by bodily areas where the pain was most frequent (F = 3.15; positive false discovery rate = 0.029) and predicted widespread pain (T > 4.4, pFWE < 0.045). Conversely, adolescents with JFM had increases in PCL/S1-thalamus (T = 4.75, pFWE = 0.046) and PCL/S1-anterior insula rsFC (T = 5.13, pFWE = 0.039).Conclusion. Reduced cortico-cortical sensory integration involving PCL/S1 and spanning the sensory systems may underly critical pain sensory features in youth with JFM. Reduced sensory integration is paralleled by augmented cross-talk between sensory and affective/salience-processing regions, potentially indicating a shift toward more affectively colored sensory experiences to the detriment of specific sensory discrimination.
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Keywords

AdolescentCerebral cortexChronic painClinical painCriteriaDisabilityFemaleFibromyalgiaFunctional connectivityGender equalityHumansMagnetic resonance imagingMechanismsMotionPrimary somatosensory cortexSense organsSex-differences

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatology due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2023, it was in position 4/57, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Rheumatology. Notably, the journal is positioned above the 90th percentile.

From a relative perspective, and based on the normalized impact indicator calculated from World Citations provided by WoS (ESI, Clarivate), it yields a value for the citation normalization relative to the expected citation rate of: 3.19. This indicates that, compared to works in the same discipline and in the same year of publication, it ranks as a work cited above average. (source consulted: ESI Nov 13, 2025)

Specifically, and according to different indexing agencies, this work has accumulated citations as of 2026-04-05, the following number of citations:

  • WoS: 13
  • Europe PMC: 13
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Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2026-04-05:

  • The use, from an academic perspective evidenced by the Altmetric agency indicator referring to aggregations made by the personal bibliographic manager Mendeley, gives us a total of: 16.
  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 16 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

  • The Total Score from Altmetric: 2.
  • The number of mentions on the social network X (formerly Twitter): 3 (Altmetric).

It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

Continuing with the social impact of the work, it is important to emphasize that, due to its content, it can be assigned to the area of interest of ODS 5 - Gender Equality, with a probability of 57% according to the mBERT algorithm developed by Aurora University.
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Leadership analysis of institutional authors

This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: United States of America.

There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (Suñol Rodrigo, Maria) and Last Author (López Solà, Marina).

the authors responsible for correspondence tasks have been Suñol Rodrigo, Maria and López Solà, Marina.

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Project objectives

Los objetivos perseguidos en esta aportación son: analizar las alteraciones en la conectividad funcional en estado de reposo (rsFC) en adolescentes con fibromialgia juvenil (JFM) en comparación con controles sanos; identificar asociaciones entre las alteraciones de rsFC en sistemas somatosensoriales y la localización y extensión del dolor corporal; evaluar las reducciones en la conectividad cortico-cortical en regiones específicas como el lobulillo paracentral (PCL) y la corteza somatosensorial primaria (S1) con significación estadística (T=4.89, pFWE<0.001); caracterizar los incrementos en la conectividad entre PCL/S1 y estructuras como el tálamo (T=4.75, pFWE=0.046) y la ínsula anterior (T=5.13, pFWE=0.039); y determinar el impacto de estas alteraciones en la integración sensorial y la experiencia afectiva del dolor en jóvenes con JFM.
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Most relevant results

El estudio investigó alteraciones en la conectividad funcional en reposo en adolescentes con fibromialgia juvenil (JFM). Se observaron reducciones significativas en la conectividad voxel-wise en el lobulillo paracentral (PCL)/corteza somatosensorial primaria (S1) (T=4.89, pFWE<0.001) y en la corteza cingulada media izquierda (T=4.67, pFWE=0.043). Se identificaron disminuciones en la conectividad cortico-cortical en principales núcleos sensoriales (T>4.4, pFWE<0.030). Estas reducciones se localizaron en áreas corporales con dolor frecuente (F=3.15, tasa de descubrimiento falso positivo=0.029) y predijeron dolor generalizado (T>4.4, pFWE<0.045). Paralelamente, se detectaron incrementos en la conectividad entre PCL/S1 y el tálamo (T=4
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Awards linked to the item

The authors gratefully thank Matt Lanier, Kaley Bridgewater, Kelsey Murphy, Brynne Williams, and Lacey Haas (Imaging Research Center, Department of Radiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center) for their assistance in collecting magnetic resonance imaging data.
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