Introduction:

Pain can be defined as an unpleasant sensory and emotional response to tissue damage. Pain is experienced when nerve endings of the site of injury send pain signals to the brain. Neuropathic pain is an abnormal sensation that occurs nerves damaged or becomes dysfunctional, causing a misfiring of pain signals to the brain.

Signs and symptoms:

neuropathic pain can be experienced by burning, aching, shooting, stabbing, or electric shock, like pain. It is often intense worse at night and may lead to disability; due to alteration in nerve sensitivity, pain may even be brought on by mild stimuli such as a gentle touch or cold breeze.

Causes:

 the main cause of neuropathic pain is damage to the brain, spinal cord, or peripheral nerves supplying the rest of the body. This can occur due to injury or disease. The possible causes of nerve damage include excessive alcohol consumption, nerve compression by a tumor, deficiency of vitamin B12, certain medicines, certain medicine, trauma, and disease conditions such as multiple sclerosis, stroke, HIV, AIDS, and diabetes.

Diagnosis:

neuropathic pain is diagnosed by reviewing your medical history and performing a thorough physical examination. Your doctor may also order blood tests, MRI scans, a nerve biopsy, or nerve conduction test.

Treatment:

your doctor may prescribe steroid or non-steroidal pain medication depending on your level of pain. Anti-seizure, anti-arrhythmic or anti-depression drugs are also helpful for managing neuropathic pain. Other recommendations include electrical stimulation devices, acupuncture, physical therapy, massage therapy, and Cognitive Behavior Therapy.

Summary:

Neuropathic pain can vary from person to person, and some cases can be challenging to manage; your doctor will recommend an ideal combination of therapies to produce the most pain relief and help you maintain or improve your function.