Pain is an inevitable part of existence, but severe debilitating or
chronic pain is a pathological condition that diminishes the quality of
life. The Brain and Pain explores the present and future of pain
management, providing a comprehensive understanding based on the latest
discoveries from many branches of neuroscience.
Richard Ambron--the former director of a neuroscience lab that conducted
leading research in this field--explains the science of how and why we
feel pain. He describes how the nervous system and brain process
information that leads to the experience of pain, detailing the cellular
and molecular functions that are responsible for the initial perceptions
of an injury. He discusses how pharmacological agents such as opiates
affect the duration and intensity of pain. Ambron examines new evidence
showing that discrete circuits in the brain modulate the experience of
pain in response to a placebo, fear, anxiety, belief, or other
circumstances, as well as how pain can be relieved by activating these
circuits using mindfulness training and other nonpharmacological
treatments. The book also evaluates the prospects of procedures such as
deep brain stimulation and optogenetics.
Current and thorough, The Brain and Pain will be invaluable for a
range of people seeking to understand their options for treatment as
well as students in neuroscience and medicine.
