title: Gating of sensory information differs in patients with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Altered sensory processing in interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome cases may result from a deficiency of the central nervous system to adequately filter incoming visceral afferent information. We used prepulse inhibition as an operational measure of sensorimotor gating to examine early pre-attentive stages of information processing in females with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome and healthy controls.
  
  
  METHODS
  We assessed prepulse inhibition in 14 female patients with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome and 17 healthy controls at 60 and 120-millisecond prepulse-to-startle stimulus intervals. We evaluated group differences in prepulse inhibition, and relationships between prepulse inhibition, neuroticism and acute stress ratings.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients showed significantly decreased prepulse inhibition at 60 and 120-millisecond prepulse intervals. The prepulse inhibition deficit was related to acute stress ratings in the patients. However, increased neuroticism appeared to mitigate the prepulse inhibition deficit in those with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome, possibly reflecting greater vigilance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Compared to healthy controls, female patients with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome had decreased ability to adequately filter incoming information and perform appropriate sensorimotor gating. These results suggest that a possible mechanism for altered interoceptive information processing in interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome cases may be a general deficit in filtering mechanisms due to altered pre-attentive processing.
authors.affiliation: Center for Neurobiology of Stress, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90073, USA.
authors.forename: Lisa Ann
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Kilpatrick
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ornitz
authors.forename: Hana
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ibrahimovic
authors.forename: Catherine S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Hubbard
authors.forename: Larissa V
authors.initials: LV
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
authors.forename: Emeran A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Mayer
authors.forename: Bruce D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Naliboff
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D018856:Cystitis, Interstitial / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D055139:Sensory Gating; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D055815:Young Adult