gate control theory of pain
E923774
The gate control theory of pain is a neuroscience model proposing that pain signals are modulated by a "gate" mechanism in the spinal cord that can amplify or dampen incoming sensory input before it reaches the brain.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| gate control theory of pain canonical | 2 |
How this entity was disambiguated
This entity first appeared as the object of triple T11402087 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.
NED1
Entity disambiguation (via context triple)
gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07
Target entity: gate control theory of pain Context triple: [Patrick Wall, notableWork, gate control theory of pain]
-
A.
the problem of pain
The Problem of Pain is a theological and philosophical issue that explores how a good and omnipotent God can allow suffering and evil in the world.
-
B.
Cannon–Bard theory of emotion
The Cannon–Bard theory of emotion proposes that emotional experiences and physiological responses occur simultaneously and independently, rather than one causing the other.
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C.
Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage
"Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage" is a landmark 1915 work in physiology and psychology by Walter Cannon that systematically explores the role of the autonomic nervous system and the fight-or-flight response in emotional and stress-related bodily reactions.
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D.
James–Lange theory of emotion
The James–Lange theory of emotion is a psychological theory proposing that emotions arise from the perception of physiological changes in the body, such as increased heart rate or sweating, rather than causing those changes.
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E.
Schachter–Singer two-factor theory of emotion
The Schachter–Singer two-factor theory of emotion proposes that emotional experience arises from a combination of physiological arousal and the cognitive interpretation of that arousal based on situational context.
- F. None of above. chosen
- G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.
NED2
Entity disambiguation (via description)
gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07
Target entity: gate control theory of pain Target entity description: The gate control theory of pain is a neuroscience model proposing that pain signals are modulated by a "gate" mechanism in the spinal cord that can amplify or dampen incoming sensory input before it reaches the brain.
-
A.
the problem of pain
The Problem of Pain is a theological and philosophical issue that explores how a good and omnipotent God can allow suffering and evil in the world.
-
B.
Cannon–Bard theory of emotion
The Cannon–Bard theory of emotion proposes that emotional experiences and physiological responses occur simultaneously and independently, rather than one causing the other.
-
C.
Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage
"Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage" is a landmark 1915 work in physiology and psychology by Walter Cannon that systematically explores the role of the autonomic nervous system and the fight-or-flight response in emotional and stress-related bodily reactions.
-
D.
James–Lange theory of emotion
The James–Lange theory of emotion is a psychological theory proposing that emotions arise from the perception of physiological changes in the body, such as increased heart rate or sweating, rather than causing those changes.
-
E.
Schachter–Singer two-factor theory of emotion
The Schachter–Singer two-factor theory of emotion proposes that emotional experience arises from a combination of physiological arousal and the cognitive interpretation of that arousal based on situational context.
- F. None of above. chosen
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
pain theory
ⓘ
somatosensory theory ⓘ theory in neuroscience ⓘ |
| appliesTo |
acute pain
ⓘ
chronic pain ⓘ |
| basedOn |
activity of nociceptive (small diameter) fibers
ⓘ
activity of non-nociceptive (large diameter) fibers ⓘ |
| challenged |
pattern theory of pain as sole explanation
ⓘ
strict specificity theory of pain ⓘ |
| coreConcept |
balance of activity in large and small diameter fibers
ⓘ
descending control from the brain ⓘ dorsal horn modulation of sensory input ⓘ spinal gating mechanism ⓘ |
| describes |
gate mechanism controlling nociceptive input
ⓘ
interaction of peripheral and central processes in pain perception ⓘ modulation of pain signals in the spinal cord ⓘ |
| emphasizes | integration of sensory, cognitive, and emotional factors in pain ⓘ |
| explains |
role of attention in pain perception
ⓘ
role of emotion in pain perception ⓘ why rubbing a painful area can reduce pain ⓘ |
| field |
neuroscience
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
pain research ⓘ physiology ⓘ psychology ⓘ |
| hasLimitation |
does not fully explain all chronic pain conditions
ⓘ
oversimplifies complex spinal and supraspinal mechanisms ⓘ |
| historicalSignificance | landmark model in modern pain science ⓘ |
| influenced |
cognitive-behavioral approaches to pain management
ⓘ
development of spinal cord stimulation ⓘ development of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation ⓘ |
| mechanismInvolves |
dorsal horn of the spinal cord
ⓘ
inhibitory interneurons ⓘ substantia gelatinosa NERFINISHED ⓘ transmission (T) cells ⓘ |
| predicts |
descending signals from the brain can open or close the gate
ⓘ
stimulation of large fibers can inhibit pain transmission ⓘ stimulation of small fibers facilitates pain transmission ⓘ |
| proposedBy |
Patrick David Wall
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Ronald Melzack NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| publicationYear | 1965 ⓘ |
| publishedIn | Science (journal) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
biopsychosocial model of pain
ⓘ
neuromatrix theory of pain ⓘ |
| statesThat |
pain signals are modulated before reaching the brain
ⓘ
psychological factors can influence pain perception via descending pathways ⓘ spinal cord acts as a gate for pain transmission ⓘ |
| usedIn |
clinical pain management education
ⓘ
design of non-pharmacological pain therapies ⓘ |
How these facts were elicited
The pipeline generated the facts above by prompting gpt-5.1 with this entity's name + description and the instruction below.
Instruction
You are a knowledge base construction expert. Given a subject entity and a description of it, return factual statements that you know for the subject as a JSON list of dictionaries(triples), where keys must be "subject", "predicate" and "object". The number of facts may be very high, between 25 to 50 or more, for very popular subjects. For less popular subjects, the number of facts can be very low, like 5 or 10. # Requirements - If you don't know the subject at all, return an empty list. - If the subject is not a named entity, return an empty list. - Include at least one triple where predicate is "instanceOf". - Do not get too wordy. - Separate several objects into multiple triples with one object.
Input
Subject: gate control theory of pain Description of subject: The gate control theory of pain is a neuroscience model proposing that pain signals are modulated by a "gate" mechanism in the spinal cord that can amplify or dampen incoming sensory input before it reaches the brain.
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.