The Neurobiology of Pain
Dr. Clifford Woolf describes the mechanisms of normal pain sensation and the mechanisms of pain transmission that result in pathologic pain syndromes. He presents an approach to pain syndromes based on these mechanisms for chronic pain treatment.
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Learning Objectives
Recall and identify key components of the sensory nervous system involved in pain transmission, including primary sensory neurons, spinal cord processing, and higher brain centers.
Explain the mechanisms of pain signaling, including peripheral transduction, spinal modulation, and descending regulation of sensory input.
Apply the concept of pain phenotypes by correlating patient-reported signs and symptoms with underlying neurobiological pain mechanisms.
Analyze the differences between nociceptive and neuropathic processes, including loss of function (negative symptoms) and gain of function (positive symptoms).
Evaluate how peripheral sensitization and altered nociceptor thresholds contribute to clinical pain presentations and guide mechanism-based treatment selection.
Author(s)
Clifford Woolf, MB, BCh, PhD
Director, F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Neurobiology Program | Boston Children’s Hospital
Professor of Neurology and Neurobiology | Harvard Medical School
Traci Wolbrink, MD, MPH
Co-Director, OPENPediatrics; Co-Director, Center for Educational Excellence and Innovation; Program Director, Pediatric Critical Care Medicine Fellowship; Senior Associate in Critical Care Medicine | Boston Children’s Hospital
Associate Professor of Anaesthesia | Harvard Medical School
David Casavant, MD
Senior Associate in Critical Care Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology
Critical Care and Pain Medicine | Boston Children's Hospital
Assistant Professor of Anaesthesia | Harvard Medical School
Citation
Woolf C, Wolbrink TA, Casavant D. The Neurobiology of Pain. 10/2015. Online video. OPENPediatrics. https://learn.openpediatrics.org/learn/course/internal/view/elearning/3034/the-neurobiology-of-pain.