Pain Factors in Psychology

Questions and Answers

Pain threshold

Increased fear of pain relief

Because they are more stoic

Nervous system integrity and physical activity Signup and view all the answers

Lower pain threshold Signup and view all the answers

Peripheral nerve damage caused by high glucose levels Signup and view all the answers

Surgery on the upper thoracic and abdominal regions Signup and view all the answers

To provide prolonged pain relief Signup and view all the answers

It has analgesic and anesthetic properties Signup and view all the answers

To reduce pain and improve function for acute and chronic pain Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Physical factors that influence the pain experience include pain threshold, pain tolerance, age, physical activity, nervous system integrity, and type of surgery and anesthesia used.

Pain threshold is the point at which a stimulus causes the sensation of pain.
Anger, fatigue, anxiety, insomnia, depression, and uncontrolled pain lower the pain threshold.
A lower pain threshold means the person experiences pain more readily with less stimuli.

Pain tolerance refers to the intensity of pain that a person will endure.
Pain tolerance varies among patients and for an individual patient, depending on the situation.
Increasing or prolonged pain may lower the pain tolerance due to fear of non-relief.

Age influences response to pain, with older patients sometimes not reporting pain or underreporting its severity.
Reasons for not reporting pain include stoicism, misconception that pain is a normal part of aging, or fear of rejection from caregivers.

Physical activity may aggravate or precipitate pain, but can also be used to relieve pain.
The integrity of the nervous system affects the response to pain, as it is perceived and interpreted within the system.

The type of surgery and anesthesia used can influence the response to pain, with surgery on the upper thoracic and abdominal regions thought to be the most painful.
The type of anesthetic agent used can influence postoperative pain, with some agents providing prolonged analgesia.
Surgery or invasive procedures may be performed to relieve pain, but pain relief may not be permanent due to nerve tissue regeneration.
Alternative procedures, such as radio-frequency lesioning and cryoanalgesia, can provide prolonged pain relief.