Noxious stimulus

A noxious stimulus is "an actually or potentially tissue damaging event."^[1] It is a prerequisite for nociception, which itself is a prerequisite for nociceptive pain.^[1]

Noxious stimuli can either be mechanical (e.g. pinching or other tissue deformation), chemical (e.g. exposure to acid or irritant), or thermal (e.g. high or low temperatures).

There are some types of tissue damage that are not detected by any sensory receptors, and thus cannot cause pain. Therefore, not all noxious stimuli are adequate stimuli of nociceptors. The adequate stimuli of nociceptors are termed nociceptive stimuli. A nociceptive stimulus is defined as "an actually or potentially tissue damaging event transduced and encoded by nociceptors."^[1]

References

1 2 3 Loeser JD, Treede RD. (2008). "The Kyoto protocol of IASP Basic Pain Terminology.". Pain 137 (3): 473–7. doi:10.1016/j.pain.2008.04.025. PMID 18583048.

Pain and nociception

By region/system

HEENT	Headache Neck Odynophagia (swallowing) Toothache

Respiratory system	Sore throat Pleurodynia

Musculoskeletal	Arthralgia (joint) Bone pain Myalgia (muscle) Muscle soreness: Acute / Delayed onset

Neurologic	Congenital insensitivity to pain HSAN Type I II congenital sensory neuropathy III familial dysautonomia IV congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis V congenital insensitivity to pain with partial anhidrosis Neuralgia Pain asymbolia Pain disorder Paroxysmal extreme pain disorder Allodynia Chronic pain Hyperalgesia Hypoalgesia Hyperpathia Phantom pain Referred pain

Other	Pelvic pain Proctalgia Back

Tests

Related concepts

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