Pain Flashcards
1
Q
What is acute pain?
A
- Occurs in association with, and at the same time as acute illness or injury.
- It has a protective function
- There is an increase in nervous system activity
2
Q
What is chronic pain?
A
- Pain that persists beyond the expected time of healing or beyond 3 months
- Pain no longer serves as a useful purpose
- Changes in pain signalling and detecting in nervous system
3
Q
What is nociceptive pain?
A
- Normally associated with injury, burns and inflammation
- Is usually proportional to the severity of an injury
- Descriptions include aching, gnawing, deep pain or feeling of pressure
- Responds to opioids
4
Q
What is somatic pain?
A
- Generally one of the nociceptive pains. Pains from musculoskeletal origin, bone, muscle, skin or connective tissue
- Usually aching, throbbing, penetrating, gnawing in quality and well localised
5
Q
What is visceral pain?
A
- Generally one of the nociceptive pains. Pains from visceral organs, such as GI tract and pancreas.
- Can be well or poorly localised
- Can be described as tender, dull, nagging, annoying, crushing etc
6
Q
What is neuropathic pain?
A
- Less common than nociceptive pain but plays a large part in chronic pain states
- Abnormal processing of sensory input
- Difficult for patients to describe
- Descriptor include electrical shock, or burning, shooting, pricking, stinging sensations
- Opioids have little or no effect
7
Q
What are the pain mechanisms?
A
- Transduction
- Transmission
- Perception
- Modulation
