Pain is always associated with negative emotions. When pain extends over a long period of time and becomes chronic it changes one’s outlook on life. One issue that rises when treating chronic pain is that the interpretation of the pain levels is always subjective. Most often diagnosis is done with the patient describing when the pain occurs, the intensity of the pain, the time span, etc.

A study of chronic back pain sufferers suggest that the better predictor of pain is through MRI brain scans. Brain activity is an excellent way to objectively quantify chronic pain as reported in the Nov. 22, 2006 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. The article is directed to medical professionals and intense in its use of medical terms.