Ever have any of these? No? Count yourself very lucky then.. Top 10 Most Painful Diseases "Disease- something that makes us shrink back away in terror involutarily. As Dumbledore rightly said, “It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more” and I think same applies to the phenomenon we call a ‘disease’. It is better to know about them than regret about the ignorance later right? Here is a list therefore, of the top 10 most painful diseases known to mankind to date. 10. Endometriosis Endometriosis One of the most common diseases in women today, Endometriosis is a common condition where the tissue that exclusively lines the inside of the womb starts growing outside the womb reaching the ovaries, fallopian tubes and even the intestine. It causes painful menstrual cycles, pain in the lower abdomen and has a negative effect on the fertility. It also contributes towards lack of energy and depression. The symptoms of this condition vary greatly with some cases showing most of the symptoms with others showing none at all. It is most common in women of the ages 25-40. 9. Peritonitis Peritonitis It is an inflammation of the thin tissue that lines most of the abdominal organs. Peritonitis can either be localized like Appendicitis or it can be generalized to the entire abdomen. This infection may be cause due to the rupture of a hollow organ as it is in the case of appendicitis. The cause of Peritonitis may be perforation of a part of the gastrointestinal track like food pipe, stomach, and the remaining intestine. The strong abdominal pain associated with it can be life threatening and requires immediate operation. 8. Dercum’s Disease Dercums-disease Adipose Dolorosa or Dercum’s disease is a rare and painful condition in which a series of benign tumors composed of adipose tissue are developed on body parts like upper arms, upper legs and on the trunk. These tumors, also known as lipomas are extremely painful. Dercum’s disease is often mistaken with obesity due to the fatty lumping seen on the body but it is much more than that. The cause of this disease is unknown but it is proposed to be dysfunctional nervous system, mechanical pressure on nerves, adipose tissue dysfunction and trauma. 7. Trigeminal Neuralgia Trigeminal Neuralgia It is a neuropathic disorder that is characterized by a series of intense pain in the face. It is often described as lightening strikes on the face. One of the most painful conditions known to human ailment, Trigeminal Neuralgia is generally caused due to the pressure on the Trigeminal Nerve which is the largest nerve in the skull. It is more common in women than men and it is generally known to effect people of 40-60 years of age. It has no permanent cure. 6. Arthritis Arthritis Arthritis is a common condition that causes inflammation and pain within a joint. It is a condition that attacks irrespective of age and is found in people of all ages including children. Arthritis has a huge list of variation and the symptoms correspond to the type of arthritis a person has. The most common symptoms though include joint pain, tenderness or stiffness in the joints, inflammation, weakness and signs of muscle wasting, restricted movement of the joints and warmth or redness of the skin over the affected part. There are two most common types of arthritis. The first one is Osteoarthritis in which the connective tissue between the different bones of the body gradually wastes away causing painful rubbing of bone and bone in the joints. The second one is Rheumatoid Arthritis which is a more severe form of arthritis. This occurs when the immune system of the body destroys the affected joints causing pain and inflammation. Though there is no permanent cure for arthritis, it allows a number of treatments that can slow down the process. 5. Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CPRS) CPRS It is an abnormal neural response to an injury in which a person develops a chronic burning pain in any of their limbs post-injury. The injury by all means can be minor, but watch out for the pain that will blow your sense of minor and major out of proportion. The skin of the affected body part becomes highly sensitive and a slightest change around it (like variation in temperature, slight touch, bump etc) will cause intense pain. Some cases of CPRS last only a few weeks while some are known to prolong over months or even years. It is a highly treatable disease with treatments including physiotherapy and medication. If it is left untreated though, it may spread to other body parts. 4. Cancer Cancer As Siddhartha Mukherjee has aptly said, Cancer in the Emperor of all maladies. It is a condition where cells in a specific part of the part start growing and reproducing uncontrollably. It starts in one part of the body before spreading to others. The cancerous cells invade the entire system, destroying the healthy cells. The most fearsome thing about cancer is that it has so many types and often diagnosed in the last stages. Amounting to about 200 different types, cancer is a condition that is without doubt painful not only due to the cause and effect but also due to the treatment. People with advanced cancer experience pain either from the tumors itself or from the side effects of the chemotherapy and radiation used in the treatment procedures. The most common types of cancer include breast cancer, prostate cancer, lung cancer, bowel cancer and uterine or womb cancer. 3. Shingles shingles Caused by the varicella-zoster virus that is the cause of Chicken Pox, Shingles is basically the infection of a nerve and the skin around it. It is characterized by a crop of blisters on one side of the body, especially around the waistline. The pain associated with it is tingling or burning which is inflamed even with the slightest touch around the region or just a breeze wafting over it. Complications like postherepetic neuralgia where the pain lasts months after the rashes are gone can arise from Shingles. Shingles is due to the reactivation of the Varicella-zoster virus which remains dormant in the nervous system long after the Chicken pox goes away. This reactivation may be due to lowered immunity of the body. It can be also due to stress so if you are letting things stress you up lately, time to go on a vacation! 2. Kidney Stones Kidney stones It is the aggregation of the dietary minerals from the urine in the kidneys. The small stones can pass without any pain from the system but the bigger stones are the ones that are a cause of excruciating pain in the lower back or at the side of the abdominal region. Kidney stones are quite common and usually affect people around 30-60 years of age. The cause of Kidney stones is generally dehydration, high Sodium or Calcium content in the blood. So if you are not drinking enough water every day, here is your cue to redress that immediately. 1. Cluster Headache Cluster headaches A neurological disorder with severe headaches typically near the eye, Cluster Headache is often said to be the most painful disease. The ache is mostly at one side of the head with nasal congestion, eye watering, and eye inflammation as the accompanying symptoms. Under this condition a group of headache attacks occur together giving it the name ‘Cluster’ headache. The cause and cure of the disease is unknown till now though it can be prevented sometimes and the acute attacks treated. The most recurrent cause however was observed to be tobacco smoking. Often confused with Migraine, Cluster Headache is also commonly known as Suicide Headache; the pain associated with it so severe that people suffering with are often driven to taking their own life. Men are more commonly affected by it than women.
Gout? Although to be pedantic, that is a form of arthritis, and has been mentioned. A good friend of mine suffers from it, and when he has an attack, he literally can not stand even the weight of a sheet on his foot. It also gets you in other joints as well as the big toe...knees elbows etc.
How awful. I feel so sorry for people with these conditions. I was just looking at a website on cluster headaches. My God what a hellish experience. Bouts can last up to 6 months, and it feels like a hot poker sticking in your eye. Thankfully it's quite rare. I've had a weird 20 second pain BEHIND one of my eyes a few times. But nothing like that.
I've known three women who had endometriosis. One was off work for six months, during which time she almost died. That's rather common, especially as we age. I'm not sure the "treatments" are any better than folk medicine. My father had it, and at his doctor's urging we had to move out to the fucking desert in Arizona because dry weather was supposed to make it better. But I have a friend with it now, and he was advised to move to Florida--where the humidity is close to 100% every day! Who hasn't lost a friend or relative to cancer? A lovely lady I knew died of cervical cancer before age 40! Yeah, I knew a guy who had that. These days, bad medicine, as it were, (medical errors and hospital-borne infections) is becoming a major cause of death in the USA. Hospitals are now discouraging doctors from wearing neckties because they never get washed!
Interesting list & it's good to think about how horrible some things can be for people. But it seems impossible to determine which is most painful because diseases & injuries affect different people differently & people deal with them differently. Too many people assume whatever they are going thru is the most horrible experience anyone could possibly have & they are not shy about telling you so. When someone says "You cannot possibly imagine", I strongly suspect it is their imagination that is lacking.
They need to add ALIMONY to that list for it can last for a very long time and won't go away easily and there's no cure for it either.
