Pain Less is a new exhibition featured in the Antenna – Science News gallery. It investigates the future of pain relief and opens on 8 November 2012.
Last year, nearly 6 billion painkillers were sold in the UK. Pain is a constant reality for some people, especially if you’re one of the 1 in 5 who suffers from relentless chronic pain.
We treat pain with drugs that haven’t really changed for decades. Is there a better way to control pain?
Explore pain through the stories of extraordinary people who deal with it every day – from the patient who suffers with chronic pain in his missing limb, to the man who feels no pain at all.
How are scientists working to create the perfect pain relief? Geneticists decode DNA to find out how pain works in the body. Neuroscientists examine brain activity to discover how emotion affects how we feel pain. Researchers ask, do we really feel no pain during surgery under anaesthetic? Or do we simply not remember it? How might this affect us?
Pain Less will introduce you to the latest pain research, through personal stories, scientific discovery, fascinating objects, films and even games.
Click on the tabs below and discover the people, researchers and fascinating science explored in Pain Less:
Year 9 students from Langley Academy collaborated with game makers ThoughtDen to create a game about pain. Want to play? Have a go at Ouch!
Glad to see some exposure on Phantom Limb Pain VR treatment! My PhD in progress is based on haptic VR therapies, looking at Phantom Limb Pain and the cortical reorganisation which takes place during the course of such therapy. Hopefully more exhibitions will showcase expanding areas like this which encompasses a wide range of disciplines.