Pain

Our new column in Scientific American Mind is out today and it's about the illusory nature of pain, and how pain perception and severity varies with mood and circumstances.

The novel is a wonderful read, but something that I hadn't expected is that the plot would revolve so much around the topic of pain, both psychological and physical.

Discovery suggests a dedicated circuit that prompts us to scratch

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A move to lengthen limbs internally rather than via an external scaffold could reduce the effects of painful treatments, especially among younger patients

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Spinal scans reveal the mechanism by which intense thinking can block pain receptors in the nervous system

It takes longer for people to get high from this oral form of marijuana, so there is little potential for abuse

Future research is needed to find out the exact causes of pain perception differences, and which ones would be best to target for more effective pain control

A neuropathic pain expert says, however, that in the past 30 years virtually no new drug targets have made it into the clinic as effective pain-relief drugs

For the first time, the polio virus has disappeared from the country for 12 months, but it could still be re-imported from neighboring nations that continue to fight the devastating disease

Chronic pain affects at least a fifth of the U.S. population, yet many of these people remain in significant physical discomfort whether they receive treatment or not.