Pressure pain thresholds: Subject factors and the meaning of peak pressures.

Background The assessment of pressure pain has become an integral part in pain research. The distribution of pressure under a plunger can be uneven. However, measurements based on conventional devices show the applied force or mean pressure, failing to take local pressure peaks into account. Our main question was whether peak pressures under the probe are responsible for pain onset. Methods A force-controlled algometer was fitted with a newly developed pressure-indicating film. Pressure pain thresholds (PPTs) of 100 healthy subjects (57 men, age 18-66 years) were assessed at 29 sites across the body. Each site was measured three times, nonconsecutively and presented in randomized order. For…