Pouring Hot Sauce On Your Wound: How Capsaicin Is Changing Pain Relief

It may sound like a horrible thing to do, but researchers both in Europe and the United States have begun dripping hot sauce on open wounds

. They say that chili peppers may hold the key to after-surgery pain relief. A pain specialist from Denmark known as Dr. Eske Aasvang and a California-based company Anesiva, Inc. are using a purified phytochemical chemical known as capsaicin to assist patients get over the pain of surgery.

Chili peppers have typically been used as a topical painkiller, with capsaicin creams available in tubes or jars or being the active ingredient in heating pads available for sale at most pharmacies. It may also relieve itching (pruritis). Among the conditions it is utilized for are back pain, bursitis, fibromyalgia, joint pain, muscle pain.

Capsaicin or 8-methyl N-vanillyl 6nonamide is one of the six capsaicinoid compounds in chili peppers, and is what gives them their distinctive mouth-burning, eye-watering, and sweat-breaking spiciness.

It Works by activating the chemical terminals of sensory neurons which raises membrane permeability to elements like calcium and sodium, thereby triggering the release of substance P, the substance responsible for the sensations of pain we experience inside our mouths when consuming a habanero chili pepper. The chemical terminals are receptors known as transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily V member 1 (TRPV1). Once they bind with capsaicin, they open and allow the latter to get into particular pain fibers, allowing excess calcium inside the cells until the nerves become overloaded and shut down. When these cells shut down, it temporarily numbs the feeling in that specific area where it was applied.

The brain reacts to the burning sensation by bringing out endorphins, the body's natural painkiller.

Endorphins are a class of neurotransmitters created by the body to respond to any type of pain, and bonds to several of the same receptors in the brain like the opioid morphine. The term itself is a blend of 2 words coined by American scientists Rabi Simantov and Solomon H. Snyder, "endogenous" and "morphine" and literally means "morphine produced naturally in the body." Endorphins are also recognized to cause a sense of well-being, and is the credited cause of a phenomenon called "runner's high." This is largely because its release is triggered by exercise, which puts an excellent deal of wear and tear on the body and leading to muscle pain. The muscle pain in turn turns into the signal for the body to release endorphins. Likewise, capsaicin has also been known to trigger the release of endorphins.

But it's the feeling of numbness that scientists would like to investigate more. By bathing surgically exposed nerves in a high sufficient dose of capsaicin, the area should be numbed for weeks, translating to much less pain and suffering for those who have just undergone surgical procedure. It means that patients will need fewer opioid painkillers as they heal. Opioid painkillers are also tangled up with severe side effects that limit their use, and are likely addictive.

Even though the application for chili peppers for pain relief after surgical procedure is yet to be approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, many scientists are optimistic that capsaicin is the future of pain relief.

by: Keith Clark

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