ABSTRACT
The newborn infant's behavioural repertoire functions among other things to signal distress and elicit rearing. Infant generated cues exhibiting cross-species effects suggests evolutionary conserved mechanisms underlying these behaviours which invites the introduction of 'infantese' as a term denoting that array of behaviours. Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage. The traditional method of evaluating pain is by communicating directly, physician and patient. The narrative method allows for an individual evaluation of the physical, affective, cognitive, and social consequences of pain and suffering. Clinical assessment of pain in preverbal patients, typically neonates, is performed by observation of behaviour and physiological parameters. Communication, it may be suggested, is the successful transfer of a message from sender to recipient if the message sent is also that received, and if the parties are convinced that so is the case.
