Pain II Flashcards
What is the difference between primary and secondary hyperalgesia?
Primary = in the periphery Secondary = at the spinal cord
What are the two fibers that play a role in nociception?
A-delta
C fibers
What is the role that a-delta fibers play a role in? What do they respond to?
Sharp, first pain
Respond to intense mechanical
What is the role of the C fibers? What do they respond to?
Mediate poorly localized, diffuse secondary pain
Polymodal response
What are the three fiber types that are activated in response to pain, in order?
- A-alpha
- A-delta
- C fibers
What are the fibers that are found in the cutaenous tissue?
A-delta
C fiber
What are the fibers that are found in the joints?
A delta C fibers (more here)
Which are more prominent in joints: c fibers or a delta?
C fibers
What are the types of fibers found in muscles?
Similar to joint:
A-delta and C fibers, with x2 more C fibers
What are the types of fibers found in visceral structures?
C fibers
Where does spinal modulation occur?
Dorsal horn of the spine (substantia gelatinosa)
What is the route of innervation of pain (second and first order neurons)?
Spinothalamic pathway
DRG, then substantia gelatinosa, anterior white commissure, and up to the thalamus
What are the fibers found in lamina I and V? What type of pain is this associated with?
A-delta fibers–fast, acute pain
What are the fibers that are found in lamina V? What type of stimuli do these respond to?
Wide dynamic range fibers
Respond to noxious and non-noxious stimuli
What are the fibers that are found in lamina II and III? What type of pai is this associated with?
C fibers–slow, chronic pain
What are the wide dynamic range fibers? What fibers do they synapse with?
Polymodal neurons in lamina V that respond to A-alpha, A-beta, A-delta , and C fibers
What is the major neurotransmitter that is involved in pain transmission?
Glutamate
What are the receptors that respond to glutamate? Which response to substance P?
AMPA and NMDA receptors
NK1 for substance P
Which fiber type has the lowest threshold?
A-beta fibers
What is secondary hyperalgesia?
Prolonged and increased activation of nociceptors in the periphery and projection pathways at the spinal cord
What is the molecular basis for central sensitization or secondary hyperalgesia? (what is the primary neurotransmitter/receptor combination involved in the pain pathway? What happens to the receptor when the signal is prolonged/strong enough?)
Pain signal from neurons releases Glutamate, which activates AMPA receptor.
AMPA receptor will activate NMDA receptor, causing rush of Ca into cell, and “wind up”
What is neuronal plasticity?
Modulation of intracellular signaling and changes in gene expression
What is the chemical basis for chronic pain?
Exaggerated release of glutamate and substance P that results in increased gene expression of pain signals
What is allodynia?
Pain resulting from a non-noxious stimulus (sunburn)
What are the fibers in the DC/ML pathway? (1)
A-beta
What are the fibers in the AL system? (2)
C fibers and A-delta fibers
What is the major pathway that pain travels through? What type of fibers are utilized here?
Neospinothalamic tract–a-delta fibers
Where does the neospinothalamic tract arise from, and terminate?
Arises from lamina I, IV, V goes to VPL nucleus of the thalamus
Where does the VPL nucleus of the thalamus send projections to?
Primary somatosensory cortex
What type of information travels through the neospinothalamic tract?
Sharp pain, with sharp localization
What type of fibers are utilized by the paleospinothalamic tract?
C fibers
Where does the paleospinothalamic tract begin and terminate?
Begins in Lamina II, III, V
Ends in the limbic system