What Is Referred Pain And How Does It Work?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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How Does Referred Pain Work? Referred pain is when the pain you feel in one part of your body is actually caused by pain or injury in another part of your body . For example, an injured pancreas could be causing pain in your back, or a heart attack could be triggering pain in your jaw.

What is referred pain mean?

Definition/Description

Referred pain is pain perceived at a location other than the site of the painful stimulus/ origin . It is the result of a network of interconnecting sensory nerves, that supplies many different tissues.

How do you know if its referred pain?

  1. Sharp pain under your shoulder blade.
  2. Dull ache in your shoulder.
  3. Pain that goes from your neck to your shoulder blade (or vice versa)
  4. Stabbing, burning, tingling, or even an “electric” feeling in your shoulder.

What is the importance of referred pain?

Referred pain contributes to the pain in myogenic headache . This is important in the initial evaluation of patients for proper diagnosis and management.

How long can referred pain last?

Your toothache moves from one tooth to another through pain signals, but the discomfort usually goes away within one or two weeks . As noted by Mayo Clinic, a tooth abscess can cause referred pain. For example, if you have an abscess in an upper tooth, pain can radiate to the lower jaw and even to your ears and neck.

What is an example of referred pain?

Referred pain is when the pain you feel in one part of your body is actually caused by pain or injury in another part of your body. For example, an injured pancreas could be causing pain in your back , or a heart attack could be triggering pain in your jaw.

Can back pain be referred to abdomen?

Common causes of back pain involve disease or injury to the muscles, bones, and/or nerves of the spine. Pain arising from abnormalities of organs within the abdomen, pelvis, or chest may also be felt in the back . This is called referred pain.

How can you tell the difference between muscle pain and nerve pain?

Different Types of Pain

The pain is typically localized in the muscle itself, and it usually hurts when you use the muscle. You feel fatigued and may have trouble sleeping. is described as crushing, burning, tingling or numbness. It is sharp and you may feel pain on the skin above the nerves as well.

What are the 4 types of pain?

  • Nociceptive Pain: Typically the result of tissue injury. ...
  • Inflammatory Pain: An abnormal inflammation caused by an inappropriate response by the body's immune system. ...
  • Neuropathic Pain: Pain caused by nerve irritation. ...
  • Functional Pain: Pain without obvious origin, but can cause pain.

Where is referred pain from gallbladder?

When your gallbladder is inflamed and swollen, it irritates your phrenic nerve. Your phrenic nerve stretches from the abdomen, through the chest, and into your neck. Each time you eat a fatty meal, it aggravates the nerve and causes referred pain in your right shoulder blade .

Which of the following is the best example of referred pain?

Examples. Myocardial ischaemia (the loss of blood flow to a part of the heart muscle tissue) is possibly the best known example of referred pain; the sensation can occur in the upper chest as a restricted feeling, or as an ache in the left shoulder, arm or even hand.

What is the difference between referred pain and radiating pain?

With radiating pain, the pain travels from one part of the body to another . The pain literally moves through the body. With referred pain, the source of pain doesn't move or get larger. The pain is simply felt in areas other than the source.

What does referred back pain feel like?

Referred pain is usually felt in the low back area and tends to radiate into the groin, buttock and upper thigh. The pain often moves around, and rarely radiates below the knee. This type of low back pain is not as common as axial low back pain or radicular pain sciatica.

Is referred pain tender to touch?

The most notable feature of CMP is the presence of trigger points . These trigger points or “tender points” are highly sensitive areas within the muscle that are painful to touch and cause pain that can be felt in another area of the body, called referred pain.

Where does the stomach referred pain?

Abdominal pain is pain that you feel anywhere between your chest and groin . This is often referred to as the stomach region or belly.

Can pain be transferred from one person to another?

Many species communicate pain to others through a range of different nonverbal channels, such as vocal and facial expressions. There are also methods for measuring the distinct facial cues and/or expressions – such as the equine facial action coding system, and rat grimace scale.

Rachel Ostrander
Author
Rachel Ostrander
Rachel is a career coach and HR consultant with over 5 years of experience working with job seekers and employers. She holds a degree in human resources management and has worked with leading companies such as Google and Amazon. Rachel is passionate about helping people find fulfilling careers and providing practical advice for navigating the job market.