Sudden pain can result from different conditions and can happen anywhere in the body. In rare circumstances, pain may signify a serious problem that requires immediate medical attention.
Call Specialty Care Clinics if you are feeling sudden pain anywhere in the body. Unexpected pain is a vital nervous system response that helps to inform you of possible injury. When an injury occurs it sends pain signals to the brain.
Sudden, intense pain can signify many different illnesses depending on where it is felt. When the cause is not immediately apparent, describing the location and sensation of the pain may assist your doctor in making a diagnosis. Some causes of sudden pain are mentioned below-
Back pain
- Infection or kidney stones– Common symptoms of kidney stones include severe pain in the lower back.
- Spinal cord fracture– Extreme back pain is a symptom of spinal cord injury.
Abdominal pain
- Appendicitis– Its symptoms include sudden pain on the right side of the lower abdomen. It begins around the navel and often shifts to the lower right abdomen.
- Acute cholecystitis– The main symptom of acute cholecystitis is a pain in the upper right side of your abdomen that spreads towards the right shoulder.
- Reduced blood flow to the intestines– When the intestines do not receive blood, it results in severe abdominal pain.
- Bowel obstruction- This obstruction causes nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.
Head Pain
- Ruptured brain aneurysm– A ruptured aneurysm can cause a sudden, severe headache.
- Thunderclap headache- A thunderclap headache is a severe, sudden headache that may be an indication of the possibly fatal subarachnoid hemorrhage disease.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF PAIN?
Depending on the underlying cause, there are several types of pain. The most common types of pain are- acute, chronic, neuropathic pain, nociceptive pain, and radicular pain.
Acute pain– Acute pain is temporary pain that develops rapidly and has a known cause, mainly tissue injury. It lasts for less than six months and disappears when the cause is treated. If an injury doesn’t heal properly or if the pain signals don’t work properly, acute pain from the injury may become chronic pain. Acute pain typically begins suddenly or severely before fading away over time.
Causes of acute pain include- cuts, burns, surgery, broken bones, or dental work.
Chronic pain– Chronic pain lasts more than six months even after the injury has healed. It affects daily activities and mental health. Some of the causes of chronic pain are- Back problems, headaches (including migraines) arthritis, nerve damage, infections, or fibromyalgia.
Chronic pain may feel like a dull, burning, throbbing pain. Symptoms that accompany chronic pain are tense muscles, weakness, and limited mobility.
Neuropathic pain– Nerve or other nervous system damage is the cause of neuropathic pain. It feels like pins and needles pain or shooting, burning, stabbing pain. In addition, it can cause someone to lose their sense of hot or cold sensations and affect their sensitivity to touch. It may be intermittent or severe. Diabetes is a common cause of neuropathic pain.
The following are causes of nerve damage or dysfunction that can result in neuropathic pain:
- Infection
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Compression
- Shingles
- HIV
- Chemotherapy drugs
- Chronic alcohol consumption
- Radiation
Nociceptive pain- Damage to body tissue is one of the causes of nociceptive pain. Nociceptive pain is sharp or throbbing. And is caused by an external injury. This kind of pain is frequently experienced in the bones, muscles, tendons, skin, and joints. Nociceptive pain can be acute or chronic. It can be further classified into visceral or somatic.
- Visceral pain– Injuries or damage to internal organs result in visceral pain. Your chest, abdomen, and pelvis are all part of your body’s trunk, where you can feel it. Identifying the exact location of visceral pain is often difficult. It is described as cramping, squeezing, or aching.
Gallstones, appendicitis, and irritable bowel syndrome cause visceral pain. - Somatic pain– Somatic pain is caused by the stimulation of the pain receptors in your tissues. It is easier to pinpoint the location of the somatic pain. Somatic pain usually appears as a dull ache or gnawing feeling.
Somatic pain is further divided into deep and superficial. Bone fractures, strained muscles, osteoporosis, cancer, and arthritis pain are examples of somatic pain. - Radicular Pain– Radicular pain occurs when the spinal nerve gets compressed. Tingling, numbness, and muscle weakness are symptoms of radicular pain. Radiculopathy is the medical term for pain that travels down the leg from the back. People frequently experience this kind of pain steadily and deep in the leg.
Pain varies from person to person. It will be easy for your doctor to recommend the right treatment if you describe your pain accurately. During the examination, your doctor may ask you the following questions:
- How long have you been in pain?
- How frequently you are in pain?
- Location of the pain?
- Is your pain widespread or only in one area?
- Whether your pain is persistent or intermittent?
Maintain a diary and keep a record of pain symptoms. Write it down, when it starts, how long it stays, how severe it is, what is the location of the pain, what it feels like, what triggered it, and the medications used to treat pain.
HOW CAN I KNOW WHETHER MY PAIN IS SEVERE?
It is important to see your doctor if you are experiencing severe pain or if it lasts longer than you expect from the injury or illness.
Some examples of normal pain are strained muscle, a skinned elbow, tension headache, broken bone, ankle sprain, labour, and delivery.
If you have a serious injury and other symptoms besides pain, seek medical attention. Pain caused by arthritis, diabetes, herniated disc, heart attack, and stroke requires medical attention.
At Specialty Care Clinics we assist with acute and chronic pain treatments. From mild to severe pain, from injury to chronic pain treatments are available.