Final Flashcards
(113 cards)
what is the purpose of pain?
-warns self or others of tissue damage/injury/disease; evokes care
negative outcomes of pain
-poor health behaviors
-loss of employment/income
-depression/fear/anxiety
-social isolation
-sleep disorders
-martial and family dysfunction
Importance of studying pain
-pain is the symptom of greatest concern to patients and most likely to lead them to use health services
-also heavily influenced by psychosocial processes
Specificity model of pain
-pain is directly proportional to the amount of tissue damage
1. upon injury, pain messages originate in nerves associated with damaged tissue and travel to the spinal cord
2. a signal is then sent to
-a motor nerve and
-the brain, where pain is perceived
Limitations to the specificity theory of pain
-short sighted: doesn’t take into account that people can have pain without any known physical damage
Gate control theory of pain
-pain is not directly proportional to tissue damage
-a neural pain gate in the spinal cord opens or closes to modulate pain signals to the brain
-open gate: amplifying pain signal
-close gate: decreasing pain signal
-involves inhibitor and projector neurons that respond to sensory input and send certain signals to the brain
what are some examples of what opens/closes the pain gate
-open:
-physical: extent of injury
-emotional: anxiety/worry
-cognitive: focusing on pain
-close:
-physical: medication
-emotional: social support
-cognitive: distraction
Neuropathic pain and two types
-results from current or past disease/damage in peripheral nerves; people experience pain in absence of noxious stimulus
-neuralgia: an extremely painful syndrome in which the patient experiences recurrent episodes of intense shooting or stabbing pain along a nerve; often follows infection
-causalgia: severe burning pain often triggered by minor stimuli
Phantom Limb Pain
-phantom limb pain is pain experienced in an amputated limb; classified as neuropathic pain
-generally dissipates overtime
-common: 80%-100% of individuals with amputations report phantom limb pain
Neuromatrix Theory
- a widespread network of neurons (distributed throughout the brain and spinal cord) generates a pattern that is felt as a whole body possessing a sense of self
-this network is responsible for generating bodily sensations, including pain (Pain is produced in the CNS)
-pain can occur in the absence of signals from sensory nerves
-each sensation, including pain, is marked by a unique neurosignature or pattern of activation in the neuromatrix
-Key Feature: other kinds of input other than sensory can produce pain
-can explain pain when no tissue damage
How can the neuromatrix theory can explain phantom limb pain
-may be triggered by other types of input, lack of normal sensory input (which may cause a unique pain neurosignature), or incongruence between types of input due to lack of limb
How does the IASP define pain
-an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage
-pain is always subjective due to its emotional component
Pain rating scales
-graphic rating scales
-numeric rating scales
-verbal rating scales
-found to be reliable and valid methods for assessing pain
Nonverbal measures of pain (pain behaviors)
-pain behaviors are observable behaviors that can occur in response to pain
-facial and audible expressions of distress
-distortions in posture or gait
-negative affect
-avoidance of activity
Neonatal facial coding scale
-brow lower
-eye squeeze
-squint
-blink
-flared nostril
-open lips
Organic vs psychogenic pain
-organic: pain that has clearly identifiable physical cause
-psychogenic pain: pain resulting from psychological processes
-today, pain is recognized to be a mix of these two factors
how do emotions impact pain
-positive emotions appear to reduce pain
-negative emotions tend to worsen and result from pain
-most people with chronic pain experience high levels of depression, anxiety, and/or anger; high levels of these emotions are associated with high levels of subsequent pain/disability
-can also obscure the memory of pain: memories of patients with high anxiety are determined by what they expected it to feel like more than what they actually felt
how does stress impact pain
-pain and stress are intimately linked…
-pain is stressful (partly bc of lack of control)
-stress can produce pain (headache)
describe the meaning of pain
-pain can be more or less intense depending on the meaning of the pain or underlying injury
-eg: enjoyment of pain during sex
describe the maladaptive methods of pain
-catastrophizing: frequent, magnified negative thoughts about pain: magnification, rumination, helplessness
Describe the appraisal model of pain catastrophizing
-primary appraisal: focusing on and exaggerating the threat value of pain
-secondary appraisal: appraisals of helplessness and of inability to cope
-catastrophizing increases with pain intensity and seems to play a role in transition from acute to chronic pain
describe adaptive methods of coping with pain
-relaxation; distraction; redefinition of pain (reappraisal); readiness to change, taking an active role
-acceptance: being inclines to engage in activities despite the pain and disinclination to control or avoid pain
role of positive reappraisal and social support in pain
-both can help alleviate intensity of pain
communal coping model of pain catastrophizing
-goal: to manage distress in a social context rather than an individual one
-when person experiences pain, they tend to catastrophize the pain which leads to worsening the pain experience
-another pathway includes having a caregiver in which increases proximity, support, empathy, and assistance