Relationship between noxious cold stimuli and the magnitude of pain sensation in man.
Nine healthy subjects received noxious cold stimulations at 20, 15, 10, 5 and 0 degrees C on the thenar eminence of both hands. Each stimulus lasted 30 sec. At the end of the stimulus, subject estimated pain intensity on a scale graduated from 0 (no pain) to 10 (intolerable pain). The results showed that the intensity of cold pain and that of the stimulus are linearly correlated (Spearman test P less than 0.001). Cold pain obeys Stevens' law with an exponent equal to one.
D000328:Adult; D003080:Cold Temperature; D005260:Female; D006225:Hand / Q000294:innervation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012677:Sensation / Q000502:physiology*