Pain: How do you prove it?

[Raginator]

If a patient experiences any kind of physical pain such as eye pain, tooth ache or headaches... how do you prove it???

Pain takes place in the brain or am I mistaken?

Doctors can make observations and point out that which is "abnormal".
For example, blood shot eyes or inflamed tissue or what not.

But how do you prove that a patient feels or doesn't feel pain?

Once I had a doctor tell me that my tonsils were a bit swollen, but I told him that I felt fine.

Pain... at least as it exists in the brain... how do you prove it?

[stella]

There are official pain tools used by medical staff
Like types of pain- stinging, burning, stabbing, dull ache ,cholicky - are just some decriptive terms
Then the simplest tool for intensity, is rating pain 1 through to 10 Ten being unbearable 0 being pain free

I am sure there are more refined methods used by pain clinics

[Michael2]

in terms of 'physical' evidence, blood pressure is a key indicator of immediate pain, i'm not sure how it works chronically even if you're still in alot of pain

also, psychological changes are a HUGE sign, but will prob only be recognized by those close to you. not wanting to do daily activities, sleeping extra, etc.

sadly pain is not really understood well, especially chronic pain...luckily, over the past decade or so, there's been a big paradigm shift in how doctors are suppose to treat pain. what the patient says is more important than signs