PSY 605 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Acupuncture, Hypnosis, Codeine
30 May 2018
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• Nociception
• Nociception pathway
• tissue damage location --> dorsal horns of the spinal cord ---> thalamus --->
somatosensory cortex
• Algogenic substances: induce pain - pain inducing substances
• Chemicals released at site of injury: neuropeptide sends info to sensory system and
• Substance P and glutamate are released at the site of the pain
• Serotonin
• Analgesic substances: reduce pain
• Endorphins and enkephalins (Opiate like effects)
• Serotonin
• You cant perceive all stimulations at once
• Information first travels to the spinal cord
• Neuropeptide that sends information to the sensory system- substance P (released at the site
of pain)
• Algogenic- means pain inducing substances
• Analgesic- pain reducing substances
• Early Theories of Pain
• Specificity theory
• Mechanical explanation:the more pain you experience the more these pathways are
activated
• Could not account for
o Injury without pain
o Pain without injury
• Could not account for the role of psychological factors. Of pain
• Specificity theory- Explains pain through pain pathways, the more pain you experience the
more these pathways are activated
• However sometimes you can experience an injury without experiencing any pain
• You may be experiencing other stimuli which are distracting you from the extent of your
injury
• Another example is phantom limb pain ( experiencing pain where this is no limb-
amputation)
• Gate Control Theory
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• Melzack & Wall (1965, 1982)
• Nervous system is active
• Described physiological mechanism by which psychological factors can affect the
experience of pain
• Neural gate can open and close thereby modulating pain
• Gate is located in the spinal cord
• The gate control theory of pain asserts that non-painful input closes the "gates"
to painful input, which prevents pain sensation from traveling to the central
nervous system. Therefore, stimulation by non-noxious input is able to
suppress pain.
• Pain Behaviours
• 4 types
• Facial or audible expression of distress
• Distorted ambulation or posture
• Negative affect
• Avoidance of activity
• Can be reinforced and influence future pain experiences
• Sex Differences
• In lab settings there are no sex differences in acute pain perception (e.g., Racine et al.,
2012)
• Differences in self-report may reflect differences in gender roles more than sex
differences
• In real-world health settings:
• Women have higher prevalence of clinical pain (Fillingham et al., 2009); in particular,
migraines/headaches and arthritis
• Inconsistent evidence regarding gender differences
o No difference in cancer pain and abdominal pain (Bodnar, 1998)
o Men have higher incidence of back pain and cardiac pain (Bodnar, 1998)
perhaps because they are more likely to engage in sports
o Women more likely to report that pain interferes with daily activities (Lester et
al., 1994)
• Pain Management Strategies
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Document Summary
Injury without pain: pain without injury, could not account for the role of psychological factors. In lab settings there are no sex differences in acute pain perception (e. g. , racine et al. : differences in self-report may reflect differences in gender roles more than sex differences. In real-world health settings: women have higher prevalence of clinical pain (fillingham et al. , 2009); in particular, migraines/headaches and arthritis. Local analgesics can be injected into the site of injury or applied topically (e. g. , You can use it to promote relaxation, which can lower blood pressure and reduce other problems related to stress. First, you systematically tense particular muscle groups in your body, such as your neck and shoulders. It could be that its just a distraction distraction: trigger release of endorphins it couuld be that it triggers release of endorphins which are substances that reduce pain.
