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Abstract
Pain is conventionally viewed as a pattern of convergent activity within the somatosensory
system that represents the exteroceptive sense of touch. Accumulating functional,
anatomical and imaging findings indicate that pain is generated by specific sensory
channels that ascend in a central homeostatic afferent pathway. Phylogenetically new
thalamocortical projections in primates provide a sensory image of the physiological
condition of the body and, in addition, direct activation of limbic motor cortex.
These findings indicate that the human feeling of pain is both a distinct sensation
and a motivation - that is, a specific emotion that reflects homeostatic behavioral
drive, similar to temperature, itch, hunger and thirst.