The Societal Impact of Pain (SIP) Belgium platform is starting off the year with a change of leadership. The Platform will now be leaded and managed by Pijnpunt and André Mouraux (Belgian Pain Society). Please find below more information on both representatives.
Pijnpunt
Pijnpunt (Pain Point) is a patient organization for people with chronic pain. This association represents Belgian pain patients, provides information, organizes support groups and does advocacy work for people with chronic pain.
André Mouraux
André Mouraux is a neurologist and neuroscientist heading a research group at UCLouvain (Brussels, Belgium) exploring the physiology and pathophysiology of the human thermonociceptive system. Using functional brain imaging techniques such as scalp and intracerebral electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), combined with novel methods to selectively activate specific classes of nociceptive afferents (temperature-controlled infrared laser stimulation, mechanical pinprick stimulation, electric stimulation) and neuromodulation techniques (transcranial direct current stimulation, transcranial magnetic stimulation), he aims at better understanding the neural processes underlying the perception of pain, the plastic changes in nociceptive pathways that occur after inflammation, injury or sustained nociceptive input, and their involvement in the development of chronic pain. Several of these approaches are also translated into tools for pharmacological development and clinical diagnosis (http://www.nocions.org).