[Acute inflammation and hyperalgesia: their consequences on the responses of various neurons of the ventrobasal thalamic complex in rats].

Neuronal responses elicited in the ventrobasal thalamic complex by somatic noxious stimuli are facilitated early in the course of carrageenin-induced acute inflammation, (i) the responses evoked by noxious stimuli applied on the injected paw were enhanced (50-300%); (ii) similar increase was also observed for responses obtained from preexisting receptive fields distinct from the injection site; (iii) moreover, new responses could be elicited by noxious stimuli applied in initially unresponsive areas. These data suggest the involvement of central mechanisms underlying these changes.