[Morphological alterations in gray matter related to primary dysmenorrhea].

To investigate the structural changes of gray matter in women with primary dysmenorrhea (PDM) and discuss the potential relationships between the changes and etiology of the disease.We used an optimized voxel-based morphometry (VBM) approach to compare total and regional volumetric changes of gray matter in 20 primary dysmenorrhea patients with 20 healthy age and menstrual cycle matched controls.All subjects were patients from the outpatient department of Tongji Hospital in 2015.Abnormal volumetric decreases of gray matter were found in the left and right parahippocampus, the left and right middle temporal gyrus, the left and right superior parietal lobule, the left postcentral cortex, the left and right inferior parietal lobule, which involved in pain transmission, pain modulation and somatic sensation.Abnormal gray matter volume changes are present in some encephalic regions of PDM patients.The functions of these regions are associated with pain modulation and somatic sensation, which suggests the changes are related with PDM.