Pain

Question 1

What is acute pain?

Answer 1

• 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

Question 2

What is chronic pain?

Answer 2

• 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

Question 3

What is nociceptive pain?

Answer 3

• 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

Question 4

What is somatic pain?

Answer 4

• 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

Question 5

What is visceral pain?

Answer 5

• 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

Question 6

What is neuropathic pain?

Answer 6

• 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

Question 7

What are the pain mechanisms?

Answer 7

• Transduction
• Transmission
• Perception
• Modulation