PATHO EXAM 4.Chamberlain College of NursingSchool name PATHOPHYSI NR283.

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PATHO EXAM 4 *Nociception - Sensation of pain resulting from transmission of neural impulses to the brain that is caused by noxious stimuli * Non-nociceptive Pain - Neuropathic Pain [peripheral and... central] Nociceptors - Free nerve endings located throughout the body in the afferent PNS that respond to chemical, mechanical and thermal stimuli. 1. Nociceptors are not evenly distributed throughout the body. Sensitivity to pain differs according to their location 2. Fingertips have more nocicpetors than the skin of the back * Nystagmus - Involuntary unilateral or bilateral rhythmic movements of the eyes. Happens at rest or when the eye is following a moving object. (eyes shake back and forth) *Jerk Nystagmus- One eye moves faster than the other. * Strabismus - One eye deviates from the other when the person is looking at an object. This is caused by a weak or hypertonic muscle in the eye. (primary symptom= diplopia) * 4 processes of nociception 1. Transduction - Begins when tissue is damaged by exposure to chemical, mechanical, or thermal noxious stimuli. This causes the activation of nociceptors. 2. Transmission - Is the conduction of pain impulses along the A-beta and C-fibers into the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. 3. Perception - Is the conscious awareness of pain, which occurs primarily in the reticular and limbic systems, and the cerebral cortex. 4. Modulation - Involves many different mechanisms that increase or decrease the transmission of pain signals throughout the nervous system. Depending on the mechanism, modulation can occur before, during, or after pain is perceived. * The Gate Control Theory Of Pain. Pain transmission is modulated by a balance of impulses conducted to the spinal cord, where cells in the substantial gelatinosa function as a "gate" that regulates the nociceptive transmission to higher centers in the CNS. Does not account for phantom pain. Gate opens= Increased perception of pain (Large A fibers) Gate closes= Decreased perception of pain (small C fibers) [Show More]

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