Associate Professor

Acting Deputy Head of Department (Curriculum & Training)

Ph.D. (London), B.Sc. (Hons.) (London)

My primary research interest is pain with a particular focus on pain that occurs without obvious injury or disease. There are many clinical conditions, including fibromyalgia, low back pain and irritable bowel syndrome, where the subjective experience of pain exceeds what might be expected from the objective signs of injury or disease. We have examined these patients using functional imaging in combination with direct stimulation and using hypnosis to modify pain experience. We have also developed a series of techniques to induce pain in pain free individuals without involving a typical noxious stimulus. These techniques include suggested pain, observing others in pain and injury to a rubber hand during the rubber hand illusion.