Pain Is An Uncomfortable Sensation

Abstract

Pain is an uncomfortable sensation that indicates that the body is damaged or threatened with injury. Pain starts at special pain receptors that are found all over the body. These pain receptors transmit messages as electrical impulses along nerves to the spinal cord and then upward to the brain. Sometimes the signal when it reaches the spinal cord elicits a reflex response. When this happens, the signal is immediately sent back by the motor nerve to the site of pain, encouraging the muscles to tighten. An example of a reflex reaction is an immediate withdrawal reaction after something very hot is inadvertently touched. The pain signal is also transmitted to the brain. Only when the brain processes the signal and perceives it as pain does the person become aware of it. Pain felt in some areas of the body does not have to indicate exactly where the problem is, because the pain can be transferred to another area. Transmitted pain occurs because signals from several areas of the body often go to the spinal cord and brain through the same nerve pathways. The ability to endure pain varies with mood, personality, and conditions. Pain can change greatly with age. As people get older, they complain less about pain, perhaps because changes in the body reduce the sensation of pain. On the other hand, older people may simply be more stoic than younger people.