**8. Conclusion**

The use of the NIBS for the relief of pain is a relatively new field and provides an exciting opportunity for neuromodulatory interventions to move to targeting cortical areas rather than traditional spinal cord stimulation. NIBS opens up the opportunity to fully probe the contributions of the widespread brain areas that are thought to be associated with pain processing in the pain neuromatrix. With the associated risk factor of mental health difficulties in chronic pain patients, this is particularly interesting as NIBS introduces the possibility of targeting cognitive-evaluative aspects of pain. Further NIBS allows experimental studies in healthy participants, as well as patient intervention, allowing the investigation of the neuromodulation of pain processing in health and disease. Taken together, these studies provide the potential for greater understanding of the role of descending modulation in pain perception and how this modulation is influenced by chronic pain. There is a clear need to look toward NIBS for future therapeutic interventions for chronic pain as there are currently a number of challenging chronic pain syndromes that are often refractory to conventional pharmacological therapy [3]. With the increasing numbers seeking treatment to pain associated with chronic disease and injury, the development of safe and effective forms of treatment is crucial in terms of both public health and the economy.
