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Touch
Brought to You By:
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Max
Jonathan
Amaad
Elise
Laura
Structure of Skin Senses
Skin Senses
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Contains nerve endings
Can feel: warmth, touch,
pain, and pleasure
More dense (sensitive)
in the tongue, face and
hands
Touch can stimulate
sexual arousal
Phantom Limb
- Contrary to the typical,
archaic, misinformed belief
of the general public, the
sensations of pain and
pleasure are developed and
processed within the general
vicinity of the Somatosensory cortex, not the
confines of the exterior
ligaments…
Phantom Limb continued
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Henceforth, an extraordinary
(du du dududu) phenomena
deemed the title “Phantom
Limb” may occur in which a
person who has faced the
tribulation of amputation will
perceive an impossible
sensation of external
experience.
Energy Transduction
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Transfer of information from one place
to another
Sensory neurons transfer messages
through pathways to the brain
Gate-Control Theory
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Transports with slow
and fast fibers
Sensation can be
blocked by “Spinal
Gate”
Pain can be relieved
by other stimulus
Pain not noticed in
heat of the moment
Dealing With Pain
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Pain is essential to
survival
Pain relief can be
achieved with drugs
Placebos are
consistently effective
Endorphins are
released to help with
pain
Pain Tolerance
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Pain threshold varies
from person to
person
Electric shocks range
from 8 times voltage
to inflict pain
High sensitivity to
pain correlates with
activation in the
thalamus
Senses
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Tactile Sense: input from the skin receptors
about touch, pressure, temperature, pain,
and movement of the hairs on the skin.
Kinesthetic sense: provides the brain with
information on the relative positions of the
parts of the body.
Vestibular Sense: input from the inner ear
about equilibrium, gravitational changes,
movement experiences, and position in
space.
Cutaneous senses - the faculty by which
external objects or forces are perceived
through contact with the body
Vestibular Senses
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Sense of balance
Controlled by copula in the ear canal
Rotation and oscillation of fluid in inner
ear alters balance
Cutaneous Senses
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Perception of external object through
touch
Provides perception of weight and
texture
Kinesthetic Sense
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Sense of spatial awareness
Feeling of where you are
Why people are capable of identifying
parts of body without eyes open
Common Sensory Disorders
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Sensory integration
disorder/dysfunction
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Can lead to problems in relationships, selfesteem, emotions, learning, daily
functions.
Hypersensitivity to touch (common in
children):
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Fear pf even light or unexpected touch
Frightened by something
Hypersensitivity To Touch
(Tactile Defensiveness)
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Upset by even light touch.
Wind, raindrops, brushing teeth.
Avoids certain textures, materials,
foods, temperatures.
Hyposensitivity To Touch
(Under-Responsive):
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Not bothered by injuries, like cuts and
bruises, and shows no distress with
shots
Likes surfaces and textures that provide
strong tactile stimulation.
Has a preference and craving for
excessively spicy, sweet, sour, or salty
foods.
Key Points
Sensation in brain not
skin.
Different people have
different pain
thresholds
Information transfer
can be blocked by
other messages
Pain is actually useful
Vocabulary Words
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Inner ear: essential part of the vertebrae organ of hearing and equilibrium that
typically is located in the temporal bone.
Semicircular canals: any of the three curved tubular canals in the labyrinth of
the ear, associated with the sense of equilibrium.
Utricle: the larger of 2 divisions of the membranous labyrinth of the internal ear.
Sematosensory (sensory) cortex: any part of the brain that receives messages
from a sense organ.
Kinesthetic sense: awareness of movement or activity in muscles or joints.
Vocabulary Continued
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Phantom limb sensation: perception of sensations, usually including pain, in an
arm or a leg after limb has been amputated.
Cutaneous sense: external object or forces are perceived through contact with
body.
Pain: physical suffering or distress, as due to injury, illness, etc.
Control theory: behavior is inspired by what a person wants most at any given
time. (William Glasser)
Cutaneous receptors: a specialized cell or group of nerve endings that respond
to a sensory stimulus.
Gate control theory: an explanation for pain control that proposes we have a
neural “gate” that can in some circumstances, block incoming pain signals.
Vocabulary Continued
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Mechanoreceptors: primary neurons that respond to mechanical stimuli by firing
action potentials.
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Thermoreceptors: nerve ending sensitive to stimulation by heat
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Nocioreceptors: respond to extreme harmful stimuli by producing the sensation
of pain
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Acupuncture: procedure of inserting and manipulating needles into various parts
of the body to relieve pain.
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Lamaze method: breathing and relaxing techniques used during childbirth.
Bibliography
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Welcome to the Sensory Processing Disorder Resource Center (2010, February). In Sensory
Processing Disorder. Retrieved November 10, 2010, from http://www.sensoryprocessing-disorder.com/
Sense of Touch (2010). In Home Science Tools. Retrieved November 10, 2010, from
http://www.hometrainingtools.com/skin-touch/a/1388/
Your Sense of Touch (2010). In The Senses. Retrieved November 10, 2010, from
http://library.thinkquest.org/3750/touch/touch.html