Neuropathic pain and stimulation of the nervous system

Abstract

From a clinical point of view, two major categories of chronic pain have been recognized. One, often referred to as “somatic” or “nociceptive” pain, is hypothesized to be due to prolonged activity of these nociceptors whose activation also leads to acute pain. This is probably an important mechanism of pain in vascular disease. It is a common clinical observation that skeletal muscle pain is particularly severe during contraction under conditions of ischemia, and there are nociceptive fibers which are known to discharge maximally when a muscle contracts under ischemic conditions [8]. Ischemia of the muscles of the limb during exercise, ischemia of the skin, secondary changes such as ulcerations, and impairment of venous return are all factors which may intervene in the physiopathology of pain in vascular disease by activating different classes of nociceptors.