<http://schema.org/articleBody>
" Having a tooth extracted and giving birth could soon be less stressful, according to scientists who have made a breakthrough in studying pain management. After mind-numbingly laborious hours in the laboratory, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School say they have succeeded in selectively blocking pain-sensing neurons in rats. A team of scientists injected rodents&amp;#039; paws with a chemical containing QX-314, the ingredient that gives hot peppers their fiery kick. They then conducted two tests: first placing the whiskery creatures on an uncomfortably hot surface and later pricking their paws with stiff nylon probes. The animals seemed immune to the pain and continued to move normally and respond to other stimulation. There was much excitement caused by the news as surgical pain management has barely evolved since the word &amp;#039;anaesthetic&amp;#039; was first coined by Oliver Wendell Holmes in 1846.  Anaesthetics are limited due to their side effects - which can include loss of consciousness or temporary paralysis. Professor Woolf, the report&amp;#039;s senior author, thinks that his team&amp;#039;s experiments could lead to many more patients remaining comfortably numb and, even alert, during procedures such as knee surgery. &amp;#039;The possibilities seem endless,&amp;#039; he said.  \u00A9 Adfero Ltd "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/healthy-living/news/a15822/rats-break-through-the-pain-barrier/>