Comfort & Pain Management

Question 1

acute pain

Answer 1

episode of pain that lasts from seconds to less than 6 months

Question 2

addiction

Answer 2

a pattern of compulsive use of addictive substances for means other than those prescribed

Question 3

adjuvant

Answer 3

drugs typically used for other purposes, but also used to enhance the effect of opioids by providing additional pain relief

Question 4

analgesic

Answer 4

pharmaceutical agent used to relieve pain

Question 5

breakthrough pain

Answer 5

temporary flare-up of moderate to severe pain that occurs even when the patient is taking around-the-clock medication for persistent pain

Question 6

chronic pain

Answer 6

episode of pain that lasts for 6 months or longer, may be intermittent or continuous

Question 7

cutaneous pain

Answer 7

superficial pain usually involving the skin or subcutaneous tissue

Question 8

dynorphin

Answer 8

the endorphin having the most potent analgesic effect

Question 9

endorphins

Answer 9

morphine-like substances released by the body that appear to alter the perception of pain

Question 10

enkephalins

Answer 10

opioids that are widespread throughout the brain and dorsal horn of the spinal cord

Question 11

how do enkephalins reduce pain

Answer 11

by inhibiting the release of substance P

Question 12

exacerbation

Answer 12

period in chronic illness when the symptoms of the disease reappear

Question 13

gate control theory

Answer 13

theory that explains that excitatory pain stimuli carried by small-diameter nerve fibers can be blocked by inhibiting signals carried by large-diameter nerve fibers

Question 14

intractable

Answer 14

severe pain that is extremely resistant to relief measures

Question 15

modulation

Answer 15

process by which the sensation of pain is inhibited or modified

Question 16

neuromodulators

Answer 16

endogenous opioid chemical regulators that appear to have analgesic activity and alter pain perception

Question 17

neuropathic pain

Answer 17

pain that results as a direct consequence of a lesion or disease affecting abnormal functioning of the PNS or CNS

Question 18

neurotransmitters

Answer 18

substances that either excite or inhibit target nerve cells

Question 19

nociceptive pain

Answer 19

pain from a normal process that results in noxious stimuli being perceived as painful

Question 20

nociceptors

Answer 20

pain receptors

Question 21

opioid

Answer 21

narcotic analgesics, bind to opiate receptor sites in the central nervous system

Question 22

pain threshold

Answer 22

amount of stimulation required before a person experiences the sensation of pain

Question 23

pain tolerance

Answer 23

point beyond which a person is no longer willing to endure pain

Question 24

perception

Answer 24

conscious process of organizing and interpreting data from the senses into meaningful information

Question 25

phantom pain

Answer 25

sensation of pain without demonstrable physiologic or pathologic substance

Question 26

physical dependence

Answer 26

body physiologically becomes accustomed to an opioid and suffers withdrawal symptoms if the opioid is suddenly removed

Question 27

psychogenic pain

Answer 27

pain for which no physical cause can be identified

Question 28

referred pain

Answer 28

pain in an area removed from that in which stimulation has its origin

Question 29

remission

Answer 29

period in a chronic illness when the disease is present, but the person does not experience symptoms of the disease

Question 30

somatic pain

Answer 30

pain originating in structures in the body’s external wall

Question 31

tolerance

Answer 31

occurrence of the body’s becoming accustomed to an opioid and needing a larger dose each time for pain relief

Question 32

transduction

Answer 32

activation of pain receptors

Question 33

transmission

Answer 33

conduction of pain sensations from the site of an injury or inflammation along clear and unclear pathways to the spinal cord and then on to higher centers

Question 34

visceral pain

Answer 34

pain originating in the internal organs in the thorax, cranium, or abdomen