Neuropathic pain

Abstract

“Pain caused by a lesion or disease of the somatosensory nervous system” is a definition for neuropathic pain according to the International Association for the Study of Pain. “Lesion” refers to an abnormality found on a diagnostic test (e.g., evidence of demyelination); “disease” refers to a known process causing a lesion (e.g., Guillain-Barre Syndrome). This lesion or disease-causing neuropathic pain may be in either the central or peripheral nervous system.