What Are Pain Receptors?
Pain receptors are found on free nerve endings located in many tissues throughout the body. This includes skin, muscles, joints, connective tissues, and internal organs. Pain receptors are activated in response to a painful stimulus, usually involving tissue damage. Once activated, pain receptors release chemicals called neurotransmitters that send information about the painful stimulus along nerves to the spinal cord and the brain. This entire process of pain transmission is called nociception, and the pain receptors found in tissues are called nociceptors.
