Pain is the most common reason people seek medical help. The majority of patients undergoing surgery experience acute post-surgical pain in the hours, days and weeks following surgery. This acute pain can usually be managed relatively effectively with analgesics. However, in 15-70% of patients (dependent on the type of surgery), this acute post-surgical pain becomes chronic, persisting for months or years, with major socioeconomic cost. An improved understanding of the mechanisms and predictors of transition from acute to chronic post-surgical pain is required to inform the development of novel biomarkers and treatment strategies for chronic post-surgical pain. The endogenous cannabinoid (endocannabinoid) system is a lipid signalling system comprised of cannabinoid receptors and their endogenous ligands. Professor Finn’s previous research, and that of others, has demonstrated that the endocannabinoid system plays a key role in the regulation of pain. We will test the hypothesis that a deficit in endocannabinoid signalling correlates with increased post-surgical pain. We will use a highly integrative, state-of-the-art, translational approach combining research in a rat model of post-surgical pain and research in patients with post-surgical pain following inguinal hernia repair. The project will combine behavioural neuroscience, molecular biology, neurochemistry, and clinical research in patients to provide novel, impactful insights into mechanisms and predictors of post-surgical pain, as well as an excellent training experience in translational pain research for the medical student applicant.
