Mechanical Pain
When tissues are stretched or compressed
beyond a threshold, pain is felt.
Example: Bending a finger backwards will
eventually cause pain. The further it
goes the more intense the pain. If left
in a position of moderate pain, with time,
the pain will become more diffuse and
difficult to localize. If the finger is
returned to a normal position within a
reasonable time, the pain will disappear
and no tissue damage will be present.
Some key mechanical pain concepts to
note are:
Pain alters with increasing and prolonged
mechanical stress.
Pain can be severe without actual tissue
damage.
When the mechanical stress is eliminated,
the pain subsides.
Typical characteristics of mechanical
pain:
the pain is intermittent
positioning or repeated movements change
the intensity or location of the pain
movement in one direction generally
worsens the pain and the opposite direction
improves the pain.
joint movement improves with improvements
in pain.
The bad news—There are no drugs that
can inhibit the signals from mechanical
pain.
The good news—mechanical pain is alleviated
when the mechanical stress is identified
and corrected.
