6,502
edits
Changes
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
→Physiology and Pathophysiology of Pain Transmission
==Physiology and Pathophysiology of Pain Transmission==
==Physiology and Pathophysiology of Pain Transmission==
Two types of nocieptive fibres (neurons) exist. C-fibres are slow-conducting and unmyelinated, whereas A-delta-fibres are small, fast-conducting, myelinated structures. The cell bodies of these neurons are located in the dorsal root ganglion, and the neurons are bipolar. The sensory nerve endings conduct afferent impulses to the cell body, and fibres then extend to the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. Here, ascending information is transmited to the cortext via several "relay stations", including the thalamus, the reticular formation, the pons and the amygdala. These modulate the signal on its journey towards conscious perception. Local reflex arcs may also be stimulated in the dorsal horn, producing spinal reflexes such as the withdrawal reflex.
===Sensitisation===
===Sensitisation===