Afferent flow patterns in a cat cutaneous nerve during painful and painless mechanical stimulation of the skin.

Quantitative characteristics of afferent flows coding information from a number of receptors were obtained by the gliding impulses method. The frequency spectrum of activity in a cutaneous nerve, the relative numbers of active Abeta, Adelta, and C fibers and their distribution by impulse transition frequency during stimulation of the cat's skin with pins and needles were determined. The afferent flow recorded in the nerve during pricking of the skin is characterized by high density, due to the number of excited fibers and the frequency of activity in them. The higher density of the afferent flow during the application of a painful than of a painless stimulus is mainly due to activity in C fibers. Unmyelinated fibers subjected to the action of the same stimulus and of chemically active substances liberated from the cells during tissue injury are excited directly and generate high-frequency spikes which increase the flow density in the nerve. The number of active myelinated fibers and the spike frequency during the action of a painful stimulus are only a little greater than the corresponding characteristics of the afferent discharge during painless stimulation.