nociceptive

adjective

no·​ci·​cep·​tive ˌnō-si-ˈsep-tiv 

1

of a stimulus : painful, injurious

2

: of, induced by, or responding to a nociceptive stimulus

nociceptive pain

a nociceptive nerve pathway

Examples of nociceptive in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The nociceptive system, which registers pain, is one player. —Emily Sohn, Scientific American, 17 Sep. 2024

Many chronic pain conditions actually involve a combination of all three of these phenomena – nociceptive, neuropathic and nociplastic pain – which adds to the difficulty of diagnosis and treatment. —Rachael Rzasa Lynn, The Conversation, 25 July 2024

Specific substances in the body, such as prostaglandins (a group of lipid compounds with hormone-like effects), can also lower nociceptive thresholds. —Jennifer Chesak, Verywell Health, 24 June 2024

If the issue is nociceptive, anti-inflammatories or knee surgery should help. —Amber Dance, Discover Magazine, 21 Jan. 2020

Although some had neuropathic pain, many had regular nociceptive pain. —David Casarett, Discover Magazine, 26 Aug. 2015

In broad strokes, pain falls into three categories: nociceptive, neuropathic and nociplastic. —Amber Dance, Discover Magazine, 21 Jan. 2020

In addition to sorting out nociceptive or neuropathic from centralized pain, QST also seems able to reveal subtypes. —Amber Dance, Scientific American, 20 Jan. 2020

But new research in mice suggests the origin might be a previously unknown organ under the skin called the nociceptive glio-neural complex. —National Geographic, 9 Jan. 2020

Word History

Etymology

Latin nocēre "to injure, harm" + -i- + -ceptive (in receptive) — more at noxious

Note: Term probably introduced by the British physiologist Charles Scott Sherrington (1857-1952) in several publications in 1904, as "Correlation of Reflexes and the Principle of the Common Path" (opening address to a meeting of the British Association, Section I, Physiology), Nature, vol. 70, no. 1819 (September 8, 1904), p. 463.

First Known Use

1904, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

nociceptive

adjective

no·​ci·​cep·​tive ˌnō-si-ˈsep-tiv 

1

of a stimulus : painful, injurious

2

: of, induced by, or responding to a nociceptive stimulus

—used especially of receptors or protective reflexes