referred pain
A patient experiences referred pain in their left shoulder during a heart episode.
Noun: A type of pain perceived at a location in the body that is different from the actual source of the pain stimulus or injury. It occurs when nerve signals from internal organs or deep tissues are misinterpreted by the brain as originating from a more superficial or distant area of the body, typically one supplied by the same nerve pathways.
"Referred pain" is a specific medical and physiological term. It is used as a countable or uncountable noun, often in diagnostic contexts to describe a patient's symptoms. - The term is commonly used with verbs like cause, experience, feel, identify, and describe. - It is frequently followed by a prepositional phrase starting with "in" to indicate the location where the pain is felt (e.g., referred pain in the shoulder), or "from" to indicate the true source (e.g., referred pain from the heart).
- The patient's referred pain in his jaw was a classic sign of an impending heart attack.
- Diagnosing referred pain can be challenging because the symptoms do not point directly to the affected organ.
- A common example is referred pain from the gallbladder being felt under the right shoulder blade.
- Patterns of referred pain: Specific internal organs often refer pain to predictable surface areas of the body (dermatomes). For instance, liver or gallbladder issues can cause referred pain in the right shoulder, while heart problems may refer pain to the left arm, neck, or jaw.
- Mechanism: The phenomenon is explained by the convergence-projection theory, where sensory nerves from both visceral organs and superficial areas converge on the same spinal cord neurons, leading the brain to "project" the sensation to the more commonly activated area (the skin).
- Radicular pain (n): Pain that radiates along the path of a nerve, often due to nerve root compression. While it radiates, it is distinct from referred pain as it follows a specific nerve distribution.
- Visceral pain (n): Pain originating from the internal organs, which is often deep, aching, and poorly localized, and is frequently experienced as referred pain.
- Somatic pain (n): Pain arising from skin, muscles, bones, or joints; it is usually well-localized and contrasts with the diffuse nature of referred visceral pain.
- Projected pain: A less common synonym emphasizing the brain's role in projecting the sensation to a different location.
- Heterotopic pain: A technical medical synonym.
- Localized pain: Pain that is felt directly at the site of injury or disease.
- Somatic pain: While not a direct antonym, somatic pain is typically well-localized to the stimulated area, unlike referred pain.
- Head's zones: Specific areas of skin surface where pain from a particular internal organ is referred.
- Convergence theory: The primary neurological explanation for referred pain, as mentioned in Advanced Usage.
A patient experiences referred pain in their left shoulder during a heart episode.
- pain that is felt at a place in the body different from the injured or diseased part where the pain would be expected
- angina pectoris can cause referred pain in the left shoulder
- pain in the right shoulder can be referred pain from gallbladder disease