How Much Does It Hurt?

After his wife went through a health episode that involved excruciating pain, seasoned journalist John Walsh became curious about how doctor assess and treat a sensation as complex and subjective as a patient’s pain. Walsh presents the fundamentals of a thriving new field of inquiry, where researchers – who come across as genuinely concerned about pain patients – are developing tools to measure pain, using brain scans to understand its origins and employing tactics that trick the brain into ignoring unhelpful pain messages. getAbstract recommends this article to anyone living with pain and others interested in a well-researched, well-written overview of cutting-edge pain science.