Title :
Pain threshold in man
Author :
Zapata-Ferrer, Angel R.
Author_Institution :
Lab. Bioeng., Inst. Mexicano de Psiquiatria, Mexico
Abstract :
The design and application of an apparatus for measuring pain threshold by controlling the conditions of an experiment carefully and measuring stimulus and response parameters precisely are described. Heat generated by an incandescent source, focused on a small area of the subject´s forehead, was used as the stimulus to determine the cutaneous pain threshold. The equipment was in different experiments in which the threshold of thermocutaneous pain was evaluated with and without the use of an analgesic. The analgesic Pirazolane was found to reduce thermocutaneous pain threshold and to diminish the average duration of alpha rhythm blockade and the response of galvanic skin resistance. The results of these experiments with constituents of marijuana indicated that canabidiol provokes and increases the sensibility of pain reactions while both Delta 9 THC and canabinol do not modify the pain threshold.<>
Keywords :
biological techniques and instruments; biothermics; skin; somatosensory phenomena; Delta 9 THC; Pirazolane; alpha rhythm blockade; analgesic; canabidiol; canabinol; galvanic skin resistance; heat generation; incandescent source; marijuana; pain threshold measurement apparatus; response parameters; thermocutaneous pain threshold; Electroencephalography; Forehead; Galvanizing; Pain; Pulse amplifiers; Radiation detectors; Relays; Skin; Temperature; Thermistors;
Journal_Title :
Engineering in Medicine and Biology Magazine, IEEE