Principles & Practice of Pain Medicine > Part II. Pain: General Principles and Evaluation >

Chapter 4. Definitions and Classification of Pain

Jyotsna Nagda and Zahid H. Bajwa

Definitions

Topics Discussed:

acute pain; allodynia; amputated limb pain; analgesia (pain absence); anesthesia dolorosa; central pain; chronic pain; complex regional pain syndromes; dysesthesia; hyperalgesia; hyperesthesia; hypesthesia; hypoalgesia; neuralgias; neuritis; neurogenic pain; neuropathic pain; neuropathic pain, peripheral; neuropathy; nociceptors; pain; pain threshold; pain, referred; paresthesia.

Sections:

Acute pain, Allodynia, Analgesia, Anesthesia dolorosa, Central pain, Chronic pain, Complex regional pain syndrome, Dysesthesia, Hyperalgesia, Hyperesthesia, Hyperpathia, Hypoalgesia, Hypoesthesia, Neuralgia, Neuritis, Neurogenic pain, Neuropathic pain, Neuropathy, Nociceptor, Noxious stimulus, Pain threshold, Pain tolerance level, Paresthesia, Peripheral neurogenic pain, Peripheral neuropathic pain, Phantom pain, Referred pain

Excerpt:

"Acute pain signifies the presence of a noxious stimulus that produces actual tissue damage or possesses the potential to do so. The presence of acute pain implies the presence of an intact nervous system and is associated with autonomic hyperactivity: hypertension, tachycardia, sweating, and vasoconstriction. A common definition of acute pain is "the normal, predicted physiologic response to an adverse chemical, thermal, or mechanical stimulus . . . associated with surgery, trauma, and acute illness." Acute pain is short lived...."

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