As a neurorehabilitation clinician, I am in charge of a care unit for patients with prolonged disorder of consciousness (i.e. patients with unresponsive wakefulness syndrome or in minimally conscious state). The aim of my research project is to understand how these severely brain injured patients are able to perceive pain using non-invasive methods such as surface EEG recordings. These investigations should also be of interest to develop a novel approach to study the relationship between pain perception and consciousness.