[Pain in the fetus: neurobiological, psychophysiological and behavioral aspects.]

Pain assessment in human fetus and infants

In humans, painful stimuli can arrive to the brain at 20-22 weeks of gestation. Therefore several researchers have devoted their efforts to study fetal analgesia during prenatal surgery, and during painful procedures in premature babies. Aim of this paper is to gather from scientific literature the available data on the signals that the human fetus and newborns produce, and that can be interpreted as signals of pain. Several signs can be interpreted as signals of pain. We will describe them in the text. In infants, these signs can be combined to create specific and sensible pain assessment tools, called pain scales, used to rate the level of pain.

[Drug treatment for pain in children and elderly persons.]

The subject of treatment of pain in children and elderly patients has been neglected to date. This symposium deals with the problems of pain treatment in these two age groups and shows the importance of adequate therapy to improve their quality of life.