Health Dictionary
Reliable, easy-to-read patient information on common medical conditions — written in plain language, free of jargon, and grounded in current evidence. Browse the most frequent diagnoses, understand what they mean for everyday life, and learn which steps and questions help you have a focused conversation with your doctor.
Pain withdrawal reflex
Introduction
Overview
The pain withdrawal reflex is an involuntary action in which the body reacts to pain by trying to move itself away from the source of the pain, to reduce or even eliminate that pain.
Although this is a reflex, there are two interesting aspects:
(1) the body can be trained to over-ride that reflex; and
(2) an unconscious body (or even drunk or drugged bodies) will not exhibit the reflex.
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]