Comfort & Pain Management Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards based on Chapter 36: Comfort & Pain Management, covering definitions, pain theories, processes, types of pain, and assessment scales.

Pain

Whatever the patient says that it is, whenever it is; a personal experience influenced by biologic, psychological, and social factors.

Gate Control Theory of Pain

A theory describing the transmission of painful stimuli, recognizing a relationship between pain and emotions, wherein small- and large-diameter nerve fibers conduct and inhibit pain stimuli toward the brain via a gating mechanism.

Transduction

The activation of pain receptors.

Transmission

Conduction of pain stimuli along pathways, specifically A-delta and C-delta fibers.

Perception of Pain

The awareness of the characteristics of pain.

Modulation

The inhibition or modification of pain.

Acute Pain

Pain that is rapid in onset, varies in intensity and duration, and is protective in nature.

Chronic Pain

Pain that may be limited, intermittent, or persistent, lasts beyond the normal healing period, and commonly features periods of remission or exacerbation.

FLACC Pain Scale

A behavioral pain assessment tool evaluated by five parameters: Faces, Legs, Activity, Cry, and Consolability.

Enkephalins

Pain modulators thought to reduce pain sensation by inhibiting the release of substance P from the terminals of afferent neurons.

Nociceptors

Peripheral nerve fibers that transmit pain.

Somatic Pain

Deep pain that is diffuse or scattered and originates in tendons, ligaments, bones, blood vessels, and nerves.

Cutaneous Pain

Pain that usually involves the skin or subcutaneous tissue.

Visceral Pain

Pain that is poorly localized and originates in body organs.

Referred Pain

Pain that originates in one part of the body and is perceived in an area distant to that part.

CRIES Pain Scale

A pain assessment tool recommended for use with neonates and infants ages 0 to 6 months.