Scales, questionnaires, tests, and other methods used to assess pain severity and duration in patients or experimental animals to aid in diagnosis, therapy, and physiological studies.

An unpleasant sensation induced by noxious stimuli which are detected by NERVE ENDINGS of NOCICEPTIVE NEURONS.

Aching sensation that persists for more than a few months. It may or may not be associated with trauma or disease, and may persist after the initial injury has healed. Its localization, character, and timing are more vague than with acute pain.

A form of therapy that employs a coordinated and interdisciplinary approach for easing the suffering and improving the quality of life of those experiencing pain.

Amount of stimulation required before the sensation of pain is experienced.

Pain during the period after surgery.

Acute or chronic pain in the lumbar or sacral regions, which may be associated with musculo-ligamentous SPRAINS AND STRAINS; INTERVERTEBRAL DISK DISPLACEMENT; and other conditions.

Acute or chronic pain located in the posterior regions of the THORAX; LUMBOSACRAL REGION; or the adjacent regions.

Discomfort or more intense forms of pain that are localized to the cervical region. This term generally refers to pain in the posterior or lateral regions of the neck.

Sensation of discomfort, distress, or agony in the abdominal region.

Persistent pain that is refractory to some or all forms of treatment.

Pain in the pelvic region of genital and non-genital origin and of organic or psychogenic etiology. Frequent causes of pain are distension or contraction of hollow viscera, rapid stretching of the capsule of a solid organ, chemical irritation, tissue ischemia, and neuritis secondary to inflammatory, neoplastic, or fibrotic processes in adjacent organs. (Kase, Weingold & Gershenson: Principles and Practice of Clinical Gynecology, 2d ed, pp479-508)

The process by which PAIN is recognized and interpreted by the brain.

Pain in the facial region including orofacial pain and craniofacial pain. Associated conditions include local inflammatory and neoplastic disorders and neuralgic syndromes involving the trigeminal, facial, and glossopharyngeal nerves. Conditions which feature recurrent or persistent facial pain as the primary manifestation of disease are referred to as FACIAL PAIN SYNDROMES.

Intensely discomforting, distressful, or agonizing sensation associated with trauma or disease, with well-defined location, character, and timing.

A type of pain that is perceived in an area away from the site where the pain arises, such as facial pain caused by lesion of the VAGUS NERVE, or throat problem generating referred pain in the ear.

The statistical reproducibility of measurements (often in a clinical context), including the testing of instrumentation or techniques to obtain reproducible results. The concept includes reproducibility of physiological measurements, which may be used to develop rules to assess probability or prognosis, or response to a stimulus; reproducibility of occurrence of a condition; and reproducibility of experimental results.

Unilateral or bilateral pain of the shoulder. It is often caused by physical activities such as work or sports participation, but may also be pathologic in origin.

Manner or style of walking.

An activity in which the body advances at a slow to moderate pace by moving the feet in a coordinated fashion. This includes recreational walking, walking for fitness, and competitive race-walking.

Exclusive legal rights or privileges applied to inventions, plants, etc.

Application of electric current in treatment without the generation of perceptible heat. It includes electric stimulation of nerves or muscles, passage of current into the body, or use of interrupted current of low intensity to raise the threshold of the skin to pain.

Conditions characterized by pain involving an extremity or other body region, HYPERESTHESIA, and localized autonomic dysfunction following injury to soft tissue or nerve. The pain is usually associated with ERYTHEMA; SKIN TEMPERATURE changes, abnormal sudomotor activity (i.e., changes in sweating due to altered sympathetic innervation) or edema. The degree of pain and other manifestations is out of proportion to that expected from the inciting event. Two subtypes of this condition have been described: type I; (REFLEX SYMPATHETIC DYSTROPHY) and type II; (CAUSALGIA). (From Pain 1995 Oct;63(1):127-33)

A syndrome characterized by severe burning pain in an extremity accompanied by sudomotor, vasomotor, and trophic changes in bone without an associated specific nerve injury. This condition is most often precipitated by trauma to soft tissue or nerve complexes. The skin over the affected region is usually erythematous and demonstrates hypersensitivity to tactile stimuli and erythema. (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1360; Pain 1995 Oct;63(1):127-33)

The circulation of the BLOOD through the MICROVASCULAR NETWORK.

A noninvasive technique that uses the differential absorption properties of hemoglobin and myoglobin to evaluate tissue oxygenation and indirectly can measure regional hemodynamics and blood flow. Near-infrared light (NIR) can propagate through tissues and at particular wavelengths is differentially absorbed by oxygenated vs. deoxygenated forms of hemoglobin and myoglobin. Illumination of intact tissue with NIR allows qualitative assessment of changes in the tissue concentration of these molecules. The analysis is also used to determine body composition.

A complex regional pain syndrome characterized by burning pain and marked sensitivity to touch (HYPERESTHESIA) in the distribution of an injured peripheral nerve. Autonomic dysfunction in the form of sudomotor (i.e., sympathetic innervation to sweat glands), vasomotor, and trophic skin changes may also occur. (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1359)

Interruption of sympathetic pathways, by local injection of an anesthetic agent, at any of four levels: peripheral nerve block, sympathetic ganglion block, extradural block, and subarachnoid block.

The finer blood vessels of the vasculature that are generally less than 100 microns in internal diameter.

The level of governmental organization and function at the national or country-wide level.

Three individuals derived from three FETUSES that were fertilized at or about the same time, developed in the UTERUS simultaneously, and born to the same mother.

Number of fetal deaths with stated or presumed gestation of 20 weeks or more in a given population. Late fetal mortality is death after of 28 weeks or more.

Five individuals derived from five FETUSES that were fertilized at or about the same time, developed in the UTERUS simultaneously, and born to the same mother.

The offspring in multiple pregnancies (PREGNANCY, MULTIPLE): TWINS; TRIPLETS; QUADRUPLETS; QUINTUPLETS; etc.

The complex of political institutions, laws, and customs through which the function of governing is carried out in a specific political unit.

A method, developed by Dr. Virginia Apgar, to evaluate a newborn's adjustment to extrauterine life. Five items - heart rate, respiratory effort, muscle tone, reflex irritability, and color - are evaluated 60 seconds after birth and again five minutes later on a scale from 0-2, 0 being the lowest, 2 being normal. The five numbers are added for the Apgar score. A score of 0-3 represents severe distress, 4-7 indicates moderate distress, and a score of 7-10 predicts an absence of difficulty in adjusting to extrauterine life.

The back (or posterior) of the FOOT in PRIMATES, found behind the ANKLE and distal to the TOES.

Shortened forms of written words or phrases used for brevity.

An inhalation anesthetic. Currently, methoxyflurane is rarely used for surgical, obstetric, or dental anesthesia. If so employed, it should be administered with NITROUS OXIDE to achieve a relatively light level of anesthesia, and a neuromuscular blocking agent given concurrently to obtain the desired degree of muscular relaxation. (From AMA Drug Evaluations Annual, 1994, p180)

The systematic identification and quantitation of all the metabolic products of a cell, tissue, organ, or organism under varying conditions. The METABOLOME of a cell or organism is a dynamic collection of metabolites which represent its net response to current conditions.

The largest country in North America, comprising 10 provinces and three territories. Its capital is Ottawa.

A province of western Canada, lying between the provinces of British Columbia and Saskatchewan. Its capital is Edmonton. It was named in honor of Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p26 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p12)

A province of Canada on the Pacific coast. Its capital is Victoria. The name given in 1858 derives from the Columbia River which was named by the American captain Robert Gray for his ship Columbia which in turn was named for Columbus. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p178 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p81-2)

Dissertations embodying results of original research and especially substantiating a specific view, e.g., substantial papers written by candidates for an academic degree under the individual direction of a professor or papers written by undergraduates desirous of achieving honors or distinction.

A series of actions, sometimes symbolic actions which may be associated with a behavior pattern, and are often indispensable to its performance.

The number of times the HEART VENTRICLES contract per unit of time, usually per minute.

Surgical incision into the chest wall.

A heterogeneous aggregate of at least three distinct histological types of lung cancer, including SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA; ADENOCARCINOMA; and LARGE CELL CARCINOMA. They are dealt with collectively because of their shared treatment strategy.

Tumors or cancer of the LUNG.

Endoscopic surgery of the pleural cavity performed with visualization via video transmission.

Surgery performed on the thoracic organs, most commonly the lungs and the heart.

A surgical specialty concerned with diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the heart, lungs, and esophagus. Two major types of thoracic surgery are classified as pulmonary and cardiovascular.

Evaluation undertaken to assess the results or consequences of management and procedures used in combating disease in order to determine the efficacy, effectiveness, safety, and practicability of these interventions in individual cases or series.