The anesthesiologist and pain: A historical memoir

Abstract

Pain has forever troubled humankind. Elucidation of nociceptive mechanisms and pathways, and appreciation of their diversity and adaptability, have been essential to understanding pain. Anesthesiologists have furthered such understanding and treatment, and advanced the appreciation of pain as a public health issue. During the twentieth century, the concepts of post-injury sensitization and hyperalgesia were developed, and the role of humoral mediators recognized. The 1950s saw the emergence of anesthesia departments, facilitating research into acute and chronic pain by specialists whose daily task originated with the elimination of pain during operations.