ABSTRACT
Our most primitive indicator of tissue injury, or of a threatening noxious stimulus, is the sensation of pain. Pain is a very subjective symptom employed by our biology to bring attention to a harmful stimulus in our inner or outer environment. As a protective mechanism of homeostasis, pain is defined by the individual patient as to its presence, significance, acuteness, quality, or intensity. Because pain is so personal and nonlinear in its presentation, therefore, does the laboratory have a role in the measurement of pain, or can the laboratory even help in the assessment and management of pain? Young (1979) listed the reasons for ordering laboratory tests in the course of patient care:
To diagnose disease
To screen for disease
To determine the severity of disease
To determine the appropriate management of the patient
To monitor progress of the disease and to monitor therapy
To monitor drug toxicity
To predict response to treatment
