A recent study investigated the brain resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) technology based on the depth autoencoder algorithm and evaluated the clinically curative effect of pregabalin in the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). 

The study enrolled 40 patients with PHN who were randomized into a treatment group and a control group. A depth autoencoders algorithm was created and applied in the brain resting-state fMRI technology. The brains of 40 patients with PHN treated with pregabalin were scanned, and the time curve derived from MRI images was combined with linear drift removal bandpass filtering to reduce low-frequency drift and high-frequency noise, and to calculate the low-frequency amplitude. Further, the calculated low-frequency signal energy was divided by the total power of the entire frequency band to obtain the low-frequency amplitude rate value. 

The amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) and fractional ALFF (f-ALFF) before and after treatment were contrasted between the treatment group and the control group, and the visual analog scale (VAS) after treatment was evaluated. 

After 4 weeks of the drug administration, the VAS scores of patients from the treatment group were lower steeply, each week, than the scores before treatment. Resting-state fMRI images revealed that the f-ALFF of the 4 brain areas in the treatment group was higher than that of the control group, specifically including the bilateral frontal lobes, bilateral parietal lobes, left parietal lobes, and right posterior cerebellar lobes. Also, the f-ALFF of the 6 brain areas in the treatment group was lower than that of the control group, specifically including the right frontal lobe, right parietal lobe, right middle frontal gyrus, precuneus, left frontal lobe, and superior frontal gyrus.

Thus, the resting-state fMRI technology efficiently displayed the brain area characteristic changes of patients with PHN before and after treatment with pregabalin. This indicates the clinically curative effect of pregabalin.