Nervous System Injury

• Neuropathic pain is the result of an injury to the peripheral nervous system, which includes the nerves that are located outside of the spinal cord and brain. It can also result from an injury to the brain and spinal cord themselves, which comprise the central nervous system.
  
  

Somatosensory

• The National Institutes of Health notes that neuropathic pain is pain that has arisen in direct consequence to a disease or lesion that has affected the somatosensory system, which includes the sensation of temperature, light touch, pressure, pain and proprioception (muscle position).
  
  

Damaged Nerve Fibers

• When nerve fibers become damaged they can send the wrong messages to pain centers. The nerve function at the site of the injury as well as in the areas surrounding the injury can become impaired because of the damage that was done to the nerve fibers.
  
  

Normal Pain

• The National Institutes of Health explains that acute pain following an injury is a normal response because it alerts you to take care of yourself. However, if you are suffering from chronic pain that persists for weeks or months, this means that your pain signals keep alerting the nervous system for some reason.
  
  

Chronic Pain

• Chronic pain may be the outcome of an initial injury, disease or infection, but those suffering from chronic pain in the absence of any past injury or bodily damage may be suffering from neuropathic pain.