Researchers asked people to rate their pain on a scale from one to ten, and the worst pain scored a staggering 9.7.
A recent study has identified what could be the most excruciating pain a person can experience.
While most of us would agree that stubbing a toe or stepping on a stray Lego piece ranks pretty high on the pain scale, neither of these common agonies even made it into the top ten.
Surprisingly, some of the most infamous painful experiences didn’t top the list either.
In previous studies, kidney stones have often been highlighted as one of the most painful conditions to endure.
One study found that more than 78 percent of female participants and nearly 89 percent of male participants rated kidney stones as the most severe pain they had ever felt.
However, new research published in 2020 suggests there’s something even worse.
A previous study said kidney stones was the most painful condition
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This recent study surveyed over 1,600 people who suffer from cluster headaches, asking them to compare their pain to other well-known painful experiences like broken bones, stab wounds, and migraines.
The results were striking, cluster headaches topped the list as the most unbearable, receiving an average pain rating of 9.7 out of 10.
According to the Mayo Clinic, cluster headaches are described as “a very painful type of headache” that “occurs in periods of frequent attacks known as clusters.”
These cluster headache episodes can last for weeks or even months at a time.
Symptoms include an intense, stabbing pain behind one eye that radiates to other areas of the face, head, and neck.
Other symptoms include one-sided head pain, restlessness, nasal congestion, and changes in skin color on the affected side of the face.
Childbirth came in second place in the study with an average pain rating of 7.2, while pancreatitis ranked third at 7.
Cluster headaches were rated 9.7 out of 10 on the pain scale
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Kidney stones, which many believed to be the worst pain imaginable, ranked fourth with an average score of 6.9.
Other conditions that scored above five included gunshot wounds, gallstones, slipped discs, migraines, fibromyalgia, and bone fractures.
Surprisingly, heart attacks only received a pain score of 5 out of 10, despite being one of the most life-threatening conditions mentioned in the study.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an estimated 805,000 Americans experience a heart attack each year, and heart disease remains one of the leading causes of death in the country.
While cluster headaches are not fatal, they can be debilitating.
They are also incredibly rare, affecting just 0.1 percent of the global population, according to the Cleveland Clinic.