No one likes to endure pain, but it is necessary for the body as it signals that tissues or organs are in danger. What types of pain exist? How can it be alleviated? And when is urgent medical help needed? Professor Oksana Drapkina explained everything.
Suddenly freezing, pulling your hand away from the fire, lying down and closing your eyes — all these actions are urgently prompted by pain. It has helped people survive since ancient times, protecting them from various dangers.
Doctors classify pain as localized, which appears in a specific area; radiating, which seems to spread throughout the body; and referred, which is felt in a location different from the true source of the pain.
"Acute pain often indicates dangerous conditions that require quick identification of the cause. Chronic pain can indicate hidden pathologies and can also lead to depression, sleep disturbances, and constant fatigue," says Oksana Drapkina.
Before treating pain, it is essential to determine its root cause. This is where it is crucial to be able to clearly recognize your sensations.
How Pain Can Indicate Specific Health Problems
Acute or stabbing pain. This type of pain is usually associated with injuries, nerve damage, or acute inflammatory processes.
Dull, aching, pressing pain. This occurs with chronic inflammatory processes, stretching of the capsules of internal organs, muscle spasms, or circulatory disorders.
Cramp-like pain. Such pain sensations most often arise if there are spasms of internal organs: the intestines, uterus, or bile ducts.
Pulsating pain. Indicates inflammation, circulatory disorders, or nerve damage.
Burning, shooting, tingling pain. In this case, nerve fiber damage may be suspected.
Drilling (boring) pain. Occurs with neurological disorders, acute inflammatory processes, or vascular spasms.
In any case, only a doctor can make an accurate diagnosis. Based on this, they will prescribe treatment.
"Non-drug methods can include the application of heat or cold, physiotherapy procedures, therapeutic exercise, and psychological techniques. They can be used if the pain is predictable and short-lived," explains Oksana Drapkina.
In other cases, medication is necessary. The required medication and dosage should also be determined by a doctor; do not self-medicate. For example, if you have a migraine, "any painkiller" will not help; only triptans can alleviate the pain syndrome.
When to Rush to the Doctor
Remember that pain is always a signal from the body about a problem. You should make an appointment if the unpleasant sensations intensify, you cannot sleep normally or engage in your usual activities, and over-the-counter pills have stopped helping.
Moreover, a specialist's consultation is needed when you experience pain at the site of a previous injury or surgical intervention, the unpleasant sensations worsen with exertion, and/or are accompanied by numbness, tingling, or swelling.
Importantly, there is pain that cannot wait at all. This means you need to see a doctor not tomorrow or after work, but right now. Here are situations when a person requires emergency assistance.
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You are experiencing such severe pain that you want to scream or cry.
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You suddenly have a pressing or squeezing pain in your chest that lasts more than two minutes or radiates to your arm, jaw, or shoulder blade (suspected myocardial infarction).
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You suffer from acute abdominal pain accompanied by fever, vomiting, or sharp tension in the abdominal muscles.
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You have a "thunderclap" headache — suddenly, very sharply, and very intensely, your head hurts. This pain may be accompanied by loss of consciousness, seizures, or speech disturbances (there is a risk of stroke).
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You have pain in your leg, the affected area is swollen and inflamed (likely a thrombus).
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You have back pain, and you find it difficult to go to the bathroom.
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You are suffering from severe pain after an injury.
Remember, the sooner you get to a doctor, the better. Only a specialist knows how to help you, alleviate the pain, and eliminate its root cause without harming the body.
