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Comparing The Gate Theory Of Pain Taught By Ronald Melzack And Patrick Wall

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Proposed by Ronald Melzack and Patrick Wall in 1965, the Gate Theory of Pain accounts for both "top-down" brain influences on pain perception as well as the effects of other tactile stimuli (e.g. rubbing a banged knee) in appearing to reduce pain. It proposed that there is a "gate" or control system in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord through which all information regarding pain must pass before reaching the brain. The Substantia Gelatinosa (SG) in the dorsal horn controls whether the gate is open or closed. An "open gate" means that the transmission cells (i.e., t-cells) can carry signals to the brain where pain is perceived; a "closed gate" stops the t-cells from firing and no pain signal is sent to
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