Neuropathic pain is a complex, chronic pain state that usually is accompanied by tissue injury. With neuropathic pain, the nerve fibers themselves may be damaged, dysfunctional or injured. These damaged nerve fibers send incorrect signals to other pain centers. The impact of nerve fiber injury includes a change in nerve function both at the site of injury and areas around the injury.
One example of neuropathic pain is called phantom limb syndrome. This occurs when an arm or a leg has been removed because of illness or injury, but the brain still gets pain messages from the nerves that originally carried impulses from the missing limb. These nerves now misfire and cause pain.
Nerve pain is different than the pain of a sprained ankle, infected wound or broken bone. While tissue or bone injury usually heals and stops hurting, nerve pain can begin hours to weeks after nerve damage occurs and can cause continuous pain. Although nerve pain can be acute or chronic, it is usually a problem that does not go away without treatment.
Every person feels nerve pain in a different way. You may have nerve pain that comes and goes, or you may feel it all of the time. You may have one or more of the following symptoms of nerve pain:
- Allodynia – This is the medical term used to describe feeling pain from things that do not normally cause pain. For example, a person with allodynia may feel pain when a feather or cool breeze touches their skin.
- Burning or electric shock-like pain
- Cutting, piercing or stabbing pain
- Hyperalgesia – This is the medical term to describe feeling pain in a more extreme way than normal. For a person with hyperalgesia, a pinprick against the skin may feel like a knife stab.
- Tingling, prickling or numbness
- Loss of feeling – When you touch something, you may not be able to feel if it is hot or cold. Losing your ability to feel may cause you to be unstable when you walk. You may not know how your feet are positioned on the floor because you cannot feel them. If you burn or cut yourself, you may not know because you cannot feel it.
What causes neuropathic pain?
Neuropathic pain often seems to have no obvious cause; but, some common causes of neuropathic pain include:
- Alcoholism Amputation Back, leg, and hip problems Chemotherapy Diabetes Facial nerve problems HIV infection or AIDS Multiple sclerosis Shingles Spine surgery
What are the symptoms of neuropathic pain?
Symptoms may include:
- Shooting and burning pain Tingling and numbness
How is neuropathic pain diagnosed?
A doctor will conduct an interview and physical exam. He or she may ask questions about how you would describe your pain, when the pain occurs, or whether anything specific triggers the pain.
No comments:
Post a Comment