Pain is an unpleasant sensation which may be associated with actual or potential tissue damage and which may have physical and emotional components. According to the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), one should distinguish between pain and nociceptionIASP pain glossary. The word "pain" comes from the Latin "poena" meaning a fine, a penalty.

The term "pain" is a subjective experience that typically accompanies nociception, but can also arise without any stimulus, and thus includes the emotional response. Nociception, on the other hand, is a neurophysiological term and denotes specific activity in nerve pathways. It is the transmission mechanism for physiological pain, and does not describe psychological pain. These pathways transmit the nominally "painful" signals, though they are not always perceived as painful. Although pain can be associated with tissue damage or inflammation, this is often not the case.

Despite its unpleasantness, pain is a critical component of the body's defense system. It is part of a rapid warning relay instructing the motor neurons of the central nervous system to minimize detected physical harm. Lack of the ability to experience pain, as in the rare condition Congenital insensitivity to pain or Congenital Analgesia, can cause many various health problems.

More on [ Pain ]

Pain - Twitter Search

http://twitpic.com/nzs7r - i have a booboo. mehh my thumb got caught when i was closing my clothes draw.. PAIN!
lisaembleton (Lisa Embleton) Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:36:27 -0000
http://twitpic.com/nzs7r - i have a booboo. mehh my thumb got caught when i was closing my clothes draw.. PAIN!
feeling kind of pain back side of my neck.... i think its due to headbanging last night....
nimesh_rulz (Nimesh Palihawadana) Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:36:26 -0000
feeling kind of pain back side of my neck.... i think its due to headbanging last night....
Joy, pain of bike commute: The weather's getting colder, but this year this reporter plans to hang in there and keep... http://bit.ly/20HMkw
ChicagoSunTimes (Chicago Sun-Times) Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:36:14 -0000
Joy, pain of bike commute: The weather's getting colder, but this year this reporter plans to hang in there and keep... http://bit.ly/20HMkw
@lewisking me too =( feeling your pain. haha
superbaad (Shauna Hayes) Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:36:07 -0000
@lewisking me too =( feeling your pain. haha
Thank goodness @meatball4761 was there... My arm was really bad last night. Not so bad now. No longer a constant pain...
Shorty34652 (Kristin) Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:35:59 -0000
Thank goodness @meatball4761 was there... My arm was really bad last night. Not so bad now. No longer a constant pain...
@mdebruin Ik ben wel de pain-in-the-ass voor ontwikkelaars he? Ik heb mijn reactie over redenen om tieners te kiezen nog wat uitgebreid.
gonny (Gonny) Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:35:53 -0000
@mdebruin Ik ben wel de pain-in-the-ass voor ontwikkelaars he? Ik heb mijn reactie over redenen om tieners te kiezen nog wat uitgebreid.

Subscribe to Pain RSS feed