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| ==Pain== | | ==Pain== |
− | *"Painful stimuli" can range from itches, to nausea, to being in agony.
| + | Painful stimuli can result in responses ranging from itches, to nausea, to simply being in agony. Painful stimuli may be transmitted to the brain by one of two pathways: the [[Sensory Pathways - Anatomy & Physiology#Spinothalamic Tract|Spinothalamic Tract]] or the the [[Sensory Pathways - Anatomy & Physiology#Ascending Reticular Formation|Ascending Reticular Formation]]. |
− | *Painful stimuli may be transmitted to the brain by one of two pathways:
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− | ::[[Sensory Pathways - Anatomy & Physiology#Spinothalamic Tract|Spinothalamic Tract]]
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− | ::[[Sensory Pathways - Anatomy & Physiology#Ascending Reticular Formation|Ascending Reticular Formation]]
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− | '''Spinothalamic Tract'''
| + | ===Spinothalamic Tract=== |
− | *Fast, initial pinprick is detected by free [[PNS Structure - Anatomy & Physiology#Nerve Fibres|nerve]] endings
| + | This fast, initial pinprick is detected by free [[PNS Structure - Anatomy & Physiology#Nerve Fibres|nerve]] endings and causes an impulse along large, myelinated fibres. The pain sensation is localised, and ends quickly. |
− | *Causes an impulse along large, myelinated fibres
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− | *Pain sensation is localised, and ends quickly
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− | '''Ascending Reticular Formation'''
| + | ===Ascending Reticular Formation=== |
− | *A painful sensation is detected by free [[PNS Structure - Anatomy & Physiology#Nerve Fibres|nerve]] endings
| + | This pain sensation is detected by free [[PNS Structure - Anatomy & Physiology#Nerve Fibres|nerve]] endings which causes an impulse along small, unmyelinated fibres. This results in a delayed perception of the sensation of pain, and that pain is often less localised but more persistent. |
− | *Causes an impulse along small, unmyelinated fibres
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− | *A delayed sensation of pain is percieved, that is less localised, persistent.
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| '''Clinical Relevance''' | | '''Clinical Relevance''' |