January 2009

The definition for pain is broad and inclusive. Within this definition there are different types.

The most common pain is from the musculoskeletal system- arising from joints [arthritis] or bones [fractures] muscles [bruises and tears] etc. Almost everyone has felt this type of hurt and it is mostly a deep ache and is well defined – ie you can localise where it comes from. The medical name is “somatic” pain – this comes from the Greek work soma – meaning body. The initial damage arises bone, tendon etc and the message is transferred via nerve endings along the nerve to the brain. It is then interpreted in the brain as PAIN.

The next most common pain arises from the inner organs – like heart, gut, liver etc. The most common is in the gut. This can be spasms of sharp pangs [from the large bowel] or burning [from the stomach]. Heart discomfort is typically felt deep within the chest. This is usually poorly defined  and is distressing. This is called “visceral” pain – from the Greek word – viscera – meaning gut.

The last common type arises from irritation of a nerve trunk. This is usually a felt as an electric sensation shooting along a limb. It often has tingling or numbness associated with it. Most people have felt this when they strike their ‘funny bone’ on their elbow. This is actually the ulnar nerve and knocking it sets off a typical “neurogenic” soreness – this means arising from a nerve in Greek. The commonest cause is ‘sciatica’ where the sciatic nerve is irritated as it leaves the spine and people feel the typical shooting pain across the buttock and down the leg.

These three types of pain make up the vast majority of pain in the body.

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