The Challenge of Pain

by Wall, Patrick; Melzack, Ronald

• ISBN13: 9780140256703
• ISBN10: 0140256709
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1996-06-01
• Publisher: Penguin

Summary

Over the years a scientific revolution has taken place in the field of bain research and therapy. A major catalyst for this change was the introduction in 1965 by Professor Ronald Melzack and Professor Patrick D. Wall of the 'gate control' theory of pain, which led to an explosion of research studies and new therapeutic approaches. In this informative and important study they explore the current status of pain research and treatment. Divided into four sections, the book describes the psychological and clinical aspects of pain, presents the rapidly increasing physiological evidence and examines the major theories of pain and their implications for its control. The authors emphasize the need to promote education regarding the treatment of pain among both health professionals and patients, arguing that many people suffer needlessly through ignorance of medical advances. In the final section they explain the exciting developments in pain control, in particular the radical approach to the control of chronic pain being pioneered by pain clinics and hospices. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Ronald Melzack is Professor Emeritus of psychology at McGill University. After receiving his Ph.D. from McGill, he carried out research at the University of Oregon Medical School, the University of Pisa, and University College London. Patrick D. Wall (1925—2001) was Professor Emeritus at the University of London. After receiving his medical degree from Oxford, he worked at the Universities of Yale, Chicago, and Harvard, and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Preface to the Updated Second Edition	xi
Part One: The Puzzle of Pain	1	(78)
Pain and Injury: the Variable Link	3	(12)
The Psychology of Pain	15	(19)
The Varieties of Pain	34	(13)
Clinical Pains	47	(32)
Part Two: The Physiology of Pain	79	(68)
Peripheral Nerve and Spinal Mechanisms	81	(27)
The Physiology of Prolonged Pain after Nerve Injury	108	(14)
Brain Mechanisms	122	(25)
Part Three: Theories of Pain	147	(48)
The Evolution of Pain Theories	149	(16)
Gate-Control and Other Mechanisms	165	(30)
Part Four: The Control of Pain	195	(101)
The Search for Drugs	197	(17)
Sensory Modulation of Pain	214	(30)
Psychological Modulation of Pain	244	(18)
Pain Clinics, Hospices and the Challenge of Needless Pain	262	(22)
The Future of Pain Control	284	(12)
Glossary	296	(5)
References	301	(28)
Index	329