Which feature is characteristic of central sensitization?

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Multiple Choice

Which feature is characteristic of central sensitization?

Central sensitization is about the nervous system becoming more responsive to pain after persistent nociceptive input. In the spinal cord and brain, CNS neurons—especially in the dorsal horn—show increased excitability, lower thresholds for activation, and stronger synaptic transmission. This heightened central responsiveness can produce hyperalgesia (more pain from painful stimuli) and allodynia (pain from normally non-painful stimuli), even when the tissue injury has begun to resolve. Mechanistically, repeated input leads to lasting changes in synaptic strength, sometimes involving NMDA receptor activity, intracellular signaling, and glial contributions, which sustain the amplified pain response. So the feature that fits central sensitization is the increased excitability of CNS neurons after persistent nociceptive input. Peripheral nerve degeneration and reduced nociceptor sensitivity reflect peripheral or degenerative processes, not the CNS amplification central sensitization describes, and immediate cessation of pain is opposite to a state of heightened central responsiveness.

Central sensitization is about the nervous system becoming more responsive to pain after persistent nociceptive input. In the spinal cord and brain, CNS neurons—especially in the dorsal horn—show increased excitability, lower thresholds for activation, and stronger synaptic transmission. This heightened central responsiveness can produce hyperalgesia (more pain from painful stimuli) and allodynia (pain from normally non-painful stimuli), even when the tissue injury has begun to resolve. Mechanistically, repeated input leads to lasting changes in synaptic strength, sometimes involving NMDA receptor activity, intracellular signaling, and glial contributions, which sustain the amplified pain response.

So the feature that fits central sensitization is the increased excitability of CNS neurons after persistent nociceptive input. Peripheral nerve degeneration and reduced nociceptor sensitivity reflect peripheral or degenerative processes, not the CNS amplification central sensitization describes, and immediate cessation of pain is opposite to a state of heightened central responsiveness.

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