Quantitative sensory testing and classical pain model dataset in 127 healthy volunteers

This dataset contains comprehensive quantitative sensory testing (QST) and classical experimental pain model data collected from healthy adult volunteers in both untreated (control) and capsaicin-sensitized conditions. The data were generated using a standardized QST battery developed by the German Research Network on Neuropathic Pain, as well as a series of traditional pain tests (mechanical, thermal, electrical, and chemical). Each file provides detailed sensory and pain response profiles, including raw measurements and processed parameters (e.g., z-scores, medians, and VAS ratings).

File overview:

File 1: qst_pain_data_orig.csv
This file contains the original raw data matrix with 127 rows (subjects) and 23 columns (variables). The first column ("ID") lists arbitrary subject identifiers. Columns 2 through 23 include various pain sensitivity measures derived from both the standardized quantitative sensory testing (QST) battery and classical experimental pain models, covering mechanical, thermal (contact heat and cold, Laser heat), electrical, and chemical (intanasally applied gaseous carbon dioxide) stimuli.

File 2: qst_pain_data_transformed.csv
This file contains the same 127 subjects and 23 variables as file 1, but with data subjected to basic transformations for analysis consistency. Transformations include sign inversion for variables where higher values indicate greater pain sensitivity (e.g., TSACold, CO2VAS, LaserVAS, CDT, CPT, MPS, WUR, VDT, DMA), conversion of blunt pressure units from N/cm² to kilopascals (kPa), and log-transformation following psychophysical scaling laws. These adjustments harmonize the direction and scale of pain sensitivity measures across modalities.

File 3: qst_pain_metadata.csv
This metadata file includes 107 subjects with five columns. The first column lists subject IDs consistent with files 1 and 2. The second column provides age in years. Columns 3 through 5 contain categorical variables: “Sex” (1 = male, 2 = female), “QST_areal_1hand2foot” indicating the body area tested (hand or foot), and “Side_of_capsaicin_1l2r” indicating the body side where capsaicin sensitization was applied.

All data are anonymized and formatted for reproducibility and secondary analysis. This dataset supports research on pain mechanisms, model validation, and translational pain biomarker development.