Pain Assessment: The Fifth Vital Sign Flashcards

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering the definitions, types, and assessment tools for pain as presented in NURS 1068 Health Assessment.

Nociceptive Pain

Pain that occurs due to tissue injury and usually resolves as tissue healing takes place; often described as aching or throbbing.

Neuropathic Pain

Pain initiated or caused by a primary lesion or dysfunction (or disease) of the somatosensory nervous system, such as diabetes or spinal cord injuries.

Nociplastic Pain

Pain originating from altered nociception with unclear evidence of actual or potential tissue damage; associated with chronic conditions like fibromyalgia.

Idiopathic Pain

Pain of an unknown origin with no obvious pathology.

Visceral Pain

Pain originating from larger interior organs due to direct injury or stretching, often accompanied by autonomic responses (vomiting, nausea, pallor).

Deep Somatic Pain

Pain originating from blood vessels, joints, tendons, muscles, and bone; may result from pressure, trauma, or ischemia.

Cutaneous Pain

Superficial pain derived from the skin surface and subcutaneous tissues, often described as a sharp, burning sensation.

Referred Pain

Pain felt at a particular site that originates from another location because both sites are innervated by the same spinal nerve.

Acute Pain

Short-term, predictable pain that is often associated with post-operative surgery, trauma, or kidney stones.

Persistent/Chronic Pain

Pain lasting $6$ months or longer that persists after the acute phase of an injury or illness.

Fifth Vital Sign

The status of pain assessment, indicating it should be incorporated with other vital signs and assessed at the start of shifts, upon admission, or after treatment.

Faces Pain Scale-Revised (FPS-R)

A self-report tool for children where specific faces are scored as $0$, $2$, $4$, $6$, $8$, or $10$ to measure how they feel inside.

Abbey Pain Scale

An observational tool used for pain assessment in clients who have cognitive impairment.

FLACC Pain Tool

An assessment tool based on Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, and Consolability, used for behavioral descriptors of pain.

OPQRSTUV

A mnemonic for pain assessment: Onset, Provocative/Palliative, Quality, Region/Radiation, Severity, Timing, Understanding, and Values.

Crepitation

An audible and palpable crunching that accompanies movement, potentially indicating objective signs of pain.

Atelectasis

A pulmonary pulmonary consideration/complication of acute pain resulting from hypoventilation and decreased cough.

Oliguria

A renal physiological response to acute pain characterized by decreased urine output.

Diaphoresis

A nonverbal pain behavior characterized by excessive sweating.

Premature Infant Pain Profile

A validated tool used for assessing pain in neonates based on behavioral and physiological cues.