How does pain reliever know where the pain is in the body?

Answer 1

I take several pain killers for chronic pain and have been explained to by my doctor a little on how some specific ones work. Now I'm sure that all pain killers have many different ways of working but most have to do with the pain and inflamation. I take Tramadol which does two things it both inhances the amount of Seretonin in the brain and binds with certain opiod receptors in the body. (it works in the Central Nervous System and is classified as a weak narcotic) The other medicine I take is Naproxen (it is in Aleve but I take a prescription strength dosage). It works by reducing inflamation by reducing hormones that cause inflamation and pain in the body. Now these are only two types of pain relievers. Tramadol- a weak Narcotic- and Naproxen -an Non-steroidal anti-inflamatory drug-. I'm sure there are more but these in my experience are the two main ones given over the counter and by prescription for pain relief. I hope this has helped you.

Answer 2

I like this question because it forces the pain reliever makers to state a reality. Any pain reliever can relieve most pain. Only the strength of the pain reliever should matter to the patient. Pain reliever companies make all these different kinds of relievers for different kinds of pain, when in fact, the pain receptors in the human body react to all of them. To explain: when you take a pain reliever, it deadens the pain to almost all your pain receptors all over your body- not to just your head or your finger or your toe. So, to take a pain reliever for a back ache is just as good to take for a head ache because this reliever will work on all pain receptors in your body. There may be some exceptions but as a rule for over the counter pain relievers this is true. Pain relievers do not know where the pain is, they just deaden the pain throughout the body to include what place is hurting.

Answer 3

They don't.

All pain medications work by 2 general methods:

1. Altering the brain's perception of pain

2. Blocking pain signals going to the brain

Opiates/opiate derivatives work by altering the brain's pain perception. This is the most commonly used pain medication.

I don't understand this answer...:(

Answer 4

A little bit of the medicine goes everywhere