Neuropathic pain

Neuropathic pain is pain caused by a lesion or disease of the somatosensory nervous system. It can arise from damage to peripheral nerves, the spinal cord, or the brain.

Ectopic firing: Action potentials generated at abnormal sites along a neuron or without the usual stimulus. Injured sensory axons can fire spontaneously or respond excessively, contributing to pain without a tissue trigger.
Somatosensory system: The neural system that processes touch, temperature, body position, and pain. Neuropathic pain requires a lesion or disease affecting this sensory system.
Diabetic neuropathy: Nerve damage caused by diabetes, often affecting sensation in the feet and legs. It is a common cause of chronic peripheral neuropathic pain.
Chronic pain: Pain that persists or recurs for longer than the normal healing period. Neuropathic pain frequently becomes chronic and may outlast the initiating lesion.
Central sensitization: Increased responsiveness of neurons in the central nervous system to sensory input. Persistent nociceptive input can amplify spinal and brain responses, sustaining hypersensitivity.
Nociception: Neural encoding of noxious stimuli, which may occur with or without conscious pain. Neuropathic pain can persist even when nociceptive input from injured tissue is absent.
Postherpetic neuralgia: Persistent nerve pain following an outbreak of shingles. It illustrates neuropathic pain after a viral disease injures sensory nerves.
Sleep and pain: The bidirectional relationship between sleep disruption and pain experience. Neuropathic symptoms can disturb sleep, while poor sleep can intensify pain.
Allodynia: Pain caused by a stimulus that does not normally provoke pain. Sensory circuits altered by neuropathy may make light touch painful.
Nociplastic pain: Pain arising from altered nociception without clear tissue damage or a somatosensory lesion. It is a distinct pain mechanism, unlike pain directly attributable to neural injury or disease.

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