Understanding Pain

Many of us have experienced pain throughout the course of our lives. We might know what pain can feel like, but it can still be difficult to fully define. One good definition of pain is "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage."¹ Another way to define pain is "localized physical suffering associated with bodily disorder (as a disease or an injury)."² While these definitions give us a scientific description of pain, the emotional and physical effects can be widespread and difficult to describe. The following sections are designed to give you a more thorough understanding of pain so that you have a better understanding of your condition and treatment options.

Did you know that there are 75 million Americans suffering from pain today?³ This number is greater than Americans with diabetes and cancer combined!

Impact of Pain

Pain is the most common reason Americans seek medical treatment. Back pain is the leading reason Americans go to the doctor, with an estimated 26 million Americans between the ages of 20-64 experiencing frequent back pain.⁴ Other common painful conditions include: arthritis, fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, knee, hip or neck pain, migraine headaches, jaw and lower facial pain.

Chronic pain creates an enormous cost in the United States, including healthcare expenses, lost income and lower productivity. The total annual cost is estimated to be $100 billion.⁵ While the financial burden associated with chronic pain is staggering, the personal impact can often be more devastating. Chronic pain, no matter the type or source, can cause depression, irritability, feelings of isolation and hopelessness. All of this can put a strain on relationships with family, friends, and loved ones. Since a person can be in severe pain without any visible marks or injury, family members and others close to the person in pain may not fully understand what is happening. While the costs associated with chronic pain are high, there is hope.

What Causes Pain
Pain is the body’s natural response to
actual or potential damage. The feeling of
pain is triggered when special nerve endings,
called pain receptors, cause electrical signals to be sent to the brain through the spinal cord. The brain recognizes these electrical signals as "pain."

Pain Categories
There are two main categories of pain – both can be mild, moderate or severe.

Acute pain
Acute pain refers to pain that occurs immediately after an injury and lasts no longer than two months when treated properly.

Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is any type of pain that lasts six months or longer. Chronic pain is often difficult to treat because:

The source or cause can be hard to determine
Pain varies from one person to the next
People with the same kind of chronic pain may need different treatments

Types of Pain

Nociceptive Pain

Nociceptive Pain arises from the stimulation of specific pain receptors. These receptors, called nociceptors, can respond to heat, cold, vibration, stretching and chemical stimuli released when tissues are irritated or injured.

Examples of Nociceptive Pain include:

Sprains
Inflammation
Obstructions
Bone Fractures
Myofascial Pain
Burns, Bumps and Bruises
Pelvic Pain caused by Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Neuropathic Pain

Neuropathic pain (also referred to as nerve pain) occurs as a result of structural damage and/or dysfunction within the nervous system. Since neuropathic pain often presents in widespread dysfunction throughout the body, the initial cause
of the pain is often difficult to track.

Examples of Neuropathic Pain include:

Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD)

Mixed Pain

In some conditions, pain appears to be caused by a mixture of Nociceptive and Neuropathic factors. An initial nervous system dysfunction or injury may trigger the release of inflammatory mediators, resulting in a subsequent neuropathic inflammation, causing the quality of pain to change to burning, throbbing or tingling type of pain.

Examples include:

Migraine headaches
Myofascial pain

How to Find Help

Due to recent advancements in the field of pain management, chronic pain patients have many options to help control their pain. If you do not already have a Pain Management Specialist, click here to find one near you. Pain Management Specialists receive advanced, specialized training in the overall treatment of patients suffering from chronic pain. Alongside these specialists is a team of healthcare professionals who are also specially trained, including nurses, physical therapists, physiatrists and counselors. A pain management specialist and his or her team will be most concerned about your quality of life and your ability to function through your daily life.

References

¹ Classification of Chronic Pain. Seattle, Washington: International Association for the Study of Pain, 1994. 240. Print.
² "pain." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2010. Merriam-Webster Online. 15 January 2010 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pain
³ American Pain Foundation Pain Statistics, August 2009
⁴ National Center for Health Statistics. Health, United States, 2006 with Chart book on Trends in the Health of Americans. Hyattsville, MD: 72
⁵ National Institute of Health. NIH Guide: New Directions in Pain Research I. September 4, 1998.

For more information on the approved use, risks and benefits of the Precision Plus SCS System, click here.