Pain: Causes

What causes pain?

Hundreds of diseases, disorders and conditions can cause pain, such as inflammatory syndromes, malignancy, trauma, and infection. In some cases, pain may be a symptom of a serious or life-threatening condition, such as a heart attack or cancer.

Traumatic causes of pain

Pain can be due to any kind of injury or trauma including:

• Amputation (removal of a body part)

• Avulsion (forcible tearing away of a body part)

• Blunt force trauma

• Broken bone

• Burn

• Eye injury, such as corneal abrasion

• Foreign body

• Laceration or contusion

• Sports or orthopedic injury, such as a torn meniscus or dislocated joint

• Sprains and strains

• Surgery

Degenerative and inflammatory causes of pain

Pain can be due to degenerative and inflammatory disorders, such as:

• Appendicitis (inflammation or infection of the appendix)

• Degenerative disc disease

• Gout (acute inflammatory arthritis)

• Inflammatory bowel disease, including Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis

• Osteoarthritis

• Pancreatitis (inflammation or infection of the pancreas)

• Pelvic inflammatory disease

• Rheumatoid arthritis

• Vasculitis (blood vessel inflammation)

Causes of neuropathic pain

Pain can be caused by peripheral or central nervous system damage or injury from the following conditions:

• Complex regional pain syndrome (often triggered by trauma or nerve damage)

• Limb amputation (phantom limb pain)

• Multiple sclerosis (autoimmune disease)

• Neuroma (tumor of a nerve)

• Peripheral neuropathy (disorder of the peripheral nerves from your spinal cord)

• Pinched nerve (nerve impingement)

• Radiculopathy (damage to nerve roots from the spinal cord)

• Repetitive stress injury, such as occurs in carpal tunnel syndrome

• Shingles (viral infection that can cause nerve pain)

• Spinal cord injury

• Spondylolisthesis (when one vertebrae extends over another)

• Trigeminal neuralgia (facial pain due to the trigeminal nerve)

Other possible causes of pain

Pain can be caused by a variety of other diseases, disorders and conditions including:

• Cancer

• Cancer treatment

• Depression

• Fibromyalgia

• Heart attack

• Infection, such as a sexually transmitted disease (STD), meningitis, Salmonella food poisoning, or ear infection

• Ischemia (insufficient flow of  blood to any tissue), such as results in gangrene

• Migraine, tension, or cluster headache

What are the potential complications of pain?

Complications associated with pain depend on the underlying disease, disorder or condition. For example, pain resulting from a degenerative condition such as multiple sclerosis can lead to inactivity and its associated complications. Fortunately, pain can often be alleviated or minimized by physical therapy, basic self-help measures, and following the treatment plan outlined by your doctor.

However, in some cases the degree and duration of your pain may become overwhelming and affect your everyday living. Research into the diagnosis and treatment of chronic pain is ongoing, so contact your health care professional for the latest information.

Over time, pain can lead to complications including:

• Absenteeism from work or school

• Pain that does not respond to treatment (intractable pain)

• Permanent nerve damage (due to a pinched nerve) including paralysis

• Physiological and psychological response to chronic pain

• Poor quality of life