When we get burnt in hot water, say whilst washing the dishes, there's an initial stroke of pain but even after we've removed the hand from under the running water it seems the pain strikes again and sometimes even harder. It feels like a double-phased reaction. Why is it so?
2006-10-08 13:56:45 · 13 answers · asked by AD 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
Its to do with the different afferent pain fibres... there is the fast acting fibre which transmits the first initial pain which makes you wihdraw from the pain.. then there is the slow fibres which cause that dull burning pain which seems to last.. the reason why it stops and comes back is to do with damage to the nerve endings on the slow fibres.. when the skin is burnt the nerve ending are also damaged and results in a continual burning pain. when water is running on the burn it is the fast fibres that over-ride the slow and tell the brain that you have your hans in water and its cold.. once you remove your hand the fast fibres switch off and the burning pain returns
2006-10-08 20:06:28 · answer #1 · answered by frogstomper_666 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Many of the answers above contain useful information. In addition, when you damage your cells by burning them you release several kinds of compound into the surrounding tissue. These include substance P, kallikrein (which leads to production of bradykinin), ATP and K+ ions.
Substance P and bradykinin via G-protein-coupled receptors to increase the sensitivity of nociceptive nerve endings. This is why even a relatively luke warm object can cause pain on an area of inflammation. ATP acts directly on an ligand-gated ion channel (P2X) to evoke an action potential in the pain fibres directly. K+ has a direct effect on nerve endings causing them to depolarise spontaneously.
There some other esoteric compounds but I won't go into them.
The reason the pain remains is that these substances remain in the locality of the damaged cells for some time. This time is different for each one. Even when they have gone, the intracellular effects they have produced are even more long-lived. This is due to channel and receptor phosphorylation events primarily.
2006-10-09 04:07:29 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You are supposed to put burns straight under cold water! The tap shouldn't be powerful as on a bad burn this can take the skin off. Without cold water, the red hot tissue in your hand will stay hpt and carry on burning, getting deeper and is more likely to leave scar tissue. You shouldn't apply anything to a burn except cold water and if it is very bad, cling film to protect the skin and keep germs out. You should DEFINATELY see a doctor, if it is that bad, you should be paying a visit to the walk in centre of A & E's minor burns or injury department.
2016-03-28 02:08:21 · answer #3 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
heat is perceived by VR1 (or TRPV1) receptors (an ion channel) which activate above a certain temperature (43oC) resulting in the signals that tell you you have been burnt. These receptors remain sensitised for a short time so even a slight stimulus results in a response (inc body temp). The receptors will then eventuallyt become desenisitised and essentially reset.
oh btw.. it's these receptors that are effected by the active ingredient of chilli peppers (capsaicin) which lowers the temperature at which the receptors become activated fooling it into thinking you're hotter than you are.
2006-10-08 22:39:25 · answer #4 · answered by blue_cabbage 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The heat has already been transferred to your skin by the contact you made with the hot item, and it got there first, and like other kinds of energy, it travels until it loses momentum. It's got a head start against the cold that you apply to the nerves in your hand, and it's still burning the layer of your skin that hurts.
2006-10-08 14:03:48 · answer #5 · answered by Em 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Frogstomper is right in his explanation about the different nerve fibres. There is also the issue that you have damaged and possibly killed cells in the skin. When cells are damaged, they leak out chemicals called cytokines that cause inflammation and pain. These will sensitise the nerves in the area for days.
2006-10-09 00:38:30 · answer #6 · answered by Kat D 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ask your doctor about an exercise routine. Regular exercise, such as walking three times a week, may reduce neuropathy pain, improve your muscle strength and help control blood sugar levels. Gentle routines such as yoga and tai chi might also help.
2016-05-14 15:11:20 · answer #7 · answered by ? 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because you're still burning. You have heated your skin up to a high temperature. Just by removing your skin's exposure from the heat doesn't mean the heat's going to disappear immediately.
2006-10-08 13:58:58 · answer #8 · answered by Johnny O 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I believe it is because it is one of the few forms of injury that doesnt destroy nerve endings, thereby allowing you to 'feel' it for a long long time.
Apparently being boiled alive is the most painful way to die.
2006-10-09 01:32:45 · answer #9 · answered by Caffeine Fiend 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cause you don't have diabetic neropathy & you feel the pain on the out side & not the inside, doesn't affect me a bit, it always hurts!
2006-10-08 14:00:49 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋