Lesson plan
Pallesthesia
Pallesthesia ( ), or vibratory sensation, is the ability to perceive vibration. This sensation, often conducted through skin and bone, is usually generated by mechanoreceptors such as Pacinian corpuscles, Merkel disk receptors, and tactile corpuscles. All of these receptors stimulate an action potential in afferent nerves (sensory neurons) found in various layers of the skin and body. The afferent neuron travels to the spinal column and then to the brain where the information is processed. Damage to the peripheral nervous system or central nervous system can result in a decline or loss of pallesthesia. A diminished sense of vibration is known as pallhypesthesia. To determine whether a patient has diminished or absent pallesthesia, testing can be conducted using a tuning fork at 128 Hz by placing it on the skin overlying a bone. This works because bones are good resonators of vibrations.
Article summary
Pallesthesia ( ), or vibratory sensation, is the ability to perceive vibration. This sensation, often conducted through skin and bone, is usually generated by mechanoreceptors such as Pacinian corpuscles, Merkel disk receptors, and tactile corpuscles. All of these receptors stimulate an action potential in afferent nerves (sensory neurons) found in various layers of the skin and body. The afferent neuron travels to the spinal column and then to the brain where the information is processed. Damage to the peripheral nervous system or central nervous system can result in a decline or loss of pallesthesia. A diminished sense of vibration is known as pallhypesthesia. To determine whether a patient has diminished or absent pallesthesia, testing can be conducted using a tuning fork at 128 Hz by placing it on the skin overlying a bone. This works because bones are good resonators of vibrations.
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.