The processing of pain in the brain involves several regions that are associated with the perception, affective aspects, and modulation of pain. These include the somatosensory cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, insular cortex, thalamus, amygdala, hypothalamus, periaqueductal grey, and prefrontal cortex, among others
. The somatosensory cortex is involved in the sensory-discriminative aspects of pain, while the anterior cingulate cortex and insular cortex are associated with the affective and cognitive-evaluative aspects of pain, respectively
. The thalamus serves as a relay station for sensory information to the cerebral cortex, including nociceptive information
. The amygdala, hypothalamus, and periaqueductal grey are involved in the emotional and motivational responses to pain, while the prefrontal cortex is responsible for the cognitive evaluation of pain
. These brain regions are functionally connected and contribute in a combined fashion to pain processing
