Pain is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) as ‘an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, actual or potential tissue damage’.

Most pain is short-lived, resolving when the painful stimulus is removed or when tissue healing has occurred: this is called acute pain.

Pain that persists or recurs for longer than 3 months is termed chronic pain.  Chronic pain may become maladaptive and is associated with significant psychological distress and functional disability.

Pain may be classified according to its physical origin.

Somatic pain arises from the ‘external’ body, for example the skin, ligaments, muscles, joints, and bones.

Visceral pain originates from the internal organs in the thorax, abdomen or pelvis. It represents a major clinical problem and is more common than somatic pain.

TAKE HOME MESSAGE

Pain originating from visceral organs is usually diffuse, dull, poorly localized and can be associated with phenomena such as referred pain, referred hyperalgesia, visceral hyperalgesia and viscero-visceral hyperalgesia.

Visceral pain is often associated with marked autonomic phenomena, including pallor, profuse sweating, nausea, GI disturbances and changes in body temperature, blood pressure and heart rate

Treatment of visceral pain involves identifying and treating the underlying cause, if identifiable, and symptomatic pain management.

Effective pain management needs to combine analgesic therapies with treatment strategies targeting specific visceral function.

Patient education and information play an important role in management in combination with pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies.