Functional MRI May Actually Show Pain for Injured Workers

Several months ago, we posted a blog entry observing how diagnostic testing, MRI in particular, does not show “pain.” What can be seen on such studies are anatomical conditions which may or may not actually cause pain. We observed how this creates difficulty in litigation, such as a Pennsylvania workers’ compensation case, since an injured worker may testify that he or she suffers pain from an injury, but would be unable to “prove” it.

After the blog entry was posted, I was contacted by Dr. Donald Marks, whose company, Cognitive Engineering, LLC, maintains that they can “show” the pain an injured worker is feeling. Specifically, Dr. Marks stated, “Consider that a functional MRI can show actual activation of the pain centers of the brain, which validates/ illustrates the complaint of pain. I have published on this, and my work has supported two litigations.” You can see more about this concept on Dr. Marks’ website by clicking here.

This is a fascinating, and developing, area of medicine, which we, as attorneys who represent injured workers, will be keeping a close eye on.