DECONSTRUCTING PAIN: THE IMPACT OF PSYCHIATRIC CHANGES ON THE BRAIN’S PAIN PROCESSING

Abstract

Although often not detailed, pain is also a vital process, known as the fifth vital sign, which must always be recorded at the same time and in the same clinical environment in which the other vital signs are also evaluated. Pain constitutes a complex processing network between the central nervous system and peripheral nerves, which use afferent and efferent pathways, through specialized receptors, called nociceptors, which are capable of detecting a noxious stimulus and generating an electrical impulse that goes from peripheral nerve fibers to the spinal cord, so that the stimulus can be processed and removed without causing further damage. However, not only the time of exposure to stimuli contributes to pain intensity, but also changes in the neurotransmitter system, which can cause psychiatric disorders such as psychosis, panic syndrome and generalized anxiety, which also influence the modulation of pain, understanding how this process occurs becomes important. To this end, this literature review seeks to bring studies and clinical trials that can clarify how the perception and intensity of pain are influenced by psychiatric disorders, what occurs in the neurotransmitter system and how pain modulation occurs in these cases. A selection criterion was used for more recent studies, using a qualitative synthesis of everything that was researched, in order to bring more recent information and knowledge on this topic. The search was refined using date filters, language (English and Portuguese) and type of publication (scientific articles, reviews, theses and dissertations).