Acute Pain Vs Chronic Pain

acute pain-a protective mechanism that alerts the individual to a condition or experiece that is immediately harmful

“Acute pain is short term and self-limiting, often follows a predictable trajectory, and dissipates after an injury heals” (Jarvis, 2012). In contrast, “chronic (persistent) pain is diagnosed when the pain continues for 6 months or longer. It can last 5, 15, or 20 years and beyond” (Jarvis, 2012). “Chronic pain does not stop when the injury heals. It persists after the predicted trajectory. It outlasts its protective purpose, and the level of pain intensity does not correspond with the physical findings” (Jarvis,

In fact, these signals are what caused us to feel pain. They are sent through the nerves to the brain in response to getting injured. Then the brain processes it as sharp or dull pain. There are many words that can describe pain. Acute and chronic are just a few of many other categories that pain can fall in. Acute pain only last for a moment, whereas chronic can last for weeks. Both are associated with physical pain.

Pain can be acute or chronic. Acute pain is intense, short in duration and generally a reaction to trauma. Chronic pain does not go away, and can range from a dull ache to excruciating agony. Terminal and non-terminal illnesses can both be causes of chronic pain. Tissue damage is not always found in chronic pain, but those who suffer from it are rendered "nonfunctional by incapacitating pain," (Murphy, 1981).

Pain can be categorized as acute or chronic pain. Chronic pain is described as pain that is both long-term and continuous, or is pain that persists after the expected healing time following an injury (British Pain Society, n.d.) Acute pain can provide a warning signal that an illness or injury has occurred. It is defined as pain that lasts less than three months and lessens with healing (Briggs, 2010). Acute pain can then be described in more detail by the following categories; somatic, visceral and neuropathic pain. Somatic pain is a localized pain described as sharp, burning, dull, aching or cramping. It is seen with incisional pain and orthopedic injuries or procedures. Visceral pain refers to an injury to the organs and linings of the body cavities. It produces diffuse pain and can be described as splitting, sharp or stabbing. This is pain that be described from patients with appendicitis, pancreatitis or intestinal injuries and illnesses. Injuries to the nerve fibers, spinal cord and central nervous system cause neuropathic pain. This pain can be described as shooting, burning, fiery, sharp, and as a painful numbness. This can be seen after an

many of our fellow creatures are more like us than we have ever imagined. They feel pain, suffer and experience stress, affection, excitement and even love…” (1). This statement can also be proven through science. Just like humans, animals also have “the same types of nociceptors… A-delta and C fibers...” (Victoria Braithwaite 1). These nociceptors are used to detect pain. If animals display many of the same qualities as humans and feel pain, they should be treated more humanely.

Chronic pain is described as a persistent pain active in the nervous system for months to even years (WebMD), that can vary

The major concepts of this theory are defined theoretically since the use of these definitions is from a broader theoretic concept. Therefore, an operational concept could be developed from them. There is consistency in the use of these concepts throughout the theory of acute pain management with examples given using the same language as well as maintaining the integrity of the concepts.

Acute pain is a strong pain that does not last longer than three months. According to Bryant and Knights (2015), an acute pain gives an extreme feeling soreness associated with injury, surgery and diseases. However, the treatment can reduce the pain in a short period of time. The untreated acute pain may develop to a chronic pain and neuropathic pain. Due to the high level of pain in acute pain, the use of analgesic drugs such as opioid is necessary to control the pain. Filizola and Devi (2012) claim that as opioid drugs like morphine and codeine are highly potent analgesics. However, there are several side effects that influence the medical efficiency of the drugs. Furthermore, as an agonist analgesics, morphine relies on the Opioid Receptors

According to The World Health Organisation (1999), defined pain as an unpleasant sensory or emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage. Pain is traditionally described as acute or chronic pain. The prevalence of chronic pain (CP) is higher than of acute of pain, as it affects 7.8 million people of all ages in the UK (Chronic Pain Policy Coalition., 2006). The current leading cause of mortality that is accounting for 60% of all deaths is due to chronic diseases and is also a problem as causes an increasing burden on the health care service (World Health Organisation., 2007). CP can affect a person’s quality of life if managed poorly, statistics shows that 25% of people lose their job and 22% leads to depression. (Chronic Pain Policy Coalition.,

Chronic pain describes pain that persists over long periods of time. It handicaps the normal lifestyle and quality of one’s life (http://www.asri.edu/neuro/brochure/pain1.htm).

The etiology of chronic pain is complex and may be due to a number of different factors. Current therapeutics often fail to produce adequate analgesia for moderate-to-severe pain

Pain is something that connects all of us. From birth to death we can identify with each other the idea and arguably the perception of it. We all know we experience it, but what is more important is how we all perceive it. It is known that there are people out there with a ‘high’ pain tolerance and there are also ones out there with a ‘low’ pain tolerance, but what is different between them? We also know that pain is an objective response to certain stimuli, there are neurons that sense and feel pain and there are nerve impulses that send these “painful” messages to the brain. What we don’t know is where the pain

The perception of pain and the emotions that control intensity differ in individuals. Since feeling pain is somewhat adaptive, when one experiences it, he or she becomes aware of an injury and tries to remove oneself from the source that caused the injury. For this reason, pain is considered neuropathic or inflammatory in nature. Thus, when pain is the outcome from the damage caused to the neurons of the peripheral and central nervous system, then that pain is neuropathic. However, if the pain signals any kind of tissue damage, then the pain is inflammatory in nature. Due to various types of pain, the interpretation of pain by neurons and the source of that pain

Chronic pain is defined as a pain that doesn’t go away for a long time. The pain can last for weeks, more than 3 months, years, and might make someone feel hopeless. Chronic pain does not relief with regular pain medication. It is important to address chronic pain because is physically and psychologically stressful. Its persistent discomfort can lead to irritation and frustration with the person’s self and with other people. Pain affects not only mental health but interfere also with someone’s sleep pattern.