The threshold of pain is the point at which pain

Pain

Pain is an unpleasant sensation often caused by intense or damaging stimuli such as stubbing a toe, burning a finger, putting iodine on a cut, and bumping the "funny bone."...

 begins to be felt. It is an entirely subjective phenomenon. The intensity at which a stimulus (e.g., heat, pressure) begins to evoke pain is the threshold intensity. So, if a hotplate on a person's skin begins to hurt at 42°C (107°F), then that is the pain threshold temperature for that bit of skin at that time. 42°C is not the pain threshold, it is the temperature at which the pain threshold was crossed.

The intensity at which a stimulus begins to evoke pain varies from individual to individual and for a given individual over time.

In hearing

The pressure

Sound pressure

Sound pressure or acoustic pressure is the local pressure deviation from the ambient atmospheric pressure caused by a sound wave. Sound pressure can be measured using a microphone in air and a hydrophone in water...

 at which sound becomes painful for a listener is the pain threshold pressure for that person at that time. The threshold pressure for sound varies only slightly with frequency and can be age-dependent. Additionally, people who have been exposed to more noise/music usually have a higher threshold pressure. Threshold shift can also cause threshold pressure to vary. Prolonged exposure to sound at levels evoking pain can cause physical damage, potentially leading to hearing impairment

Hearing impairment

-Definition:Deafness is the inability for the ear to interpret certain or all frequencies of sound.-Environmental Situations:Deafness can be caused by environmental situations such as noise, trauma, or other ear defections...

.

The volume

Volume

Volume is the quantity of three-dimensional space enclosed by some closed boundary, for example, the space that a substance or shape occupies or contains....

 in acoustics

Acoustics

Acoustics is the interdisciplinary science that deals with the study of all mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician while someone working in the field of acoustics...

 refers to loudness

Loudness

Loudness is the quality of a sound that is primarily a psychological correlate of physical strength . More formally, it is defined as "that attribute of auditory sensation in terms of which sounds can be ordered on a scale extending from quiet to loud."Loudness, a subjective measure, is often...

. It is a common term for the amplitude

Amplitude

Amplitude is the magnitude of change in the oscillating variable with each oscillation within an oscillating system. For example, sound waves in air are oscillations in atmospheric pressure and their amplitudes are proportional to the change in pressure during one oscillation...

 of sound

Sound

Sound is a mechanical wave that is an oscillation of pressure transmitted through a solid, liquid, or gas, composed of frequencies within the range of hearing and of a level sufficiently strong to be heard, or the sensation stimulated in organs of hearing by such vibrations.-Propagation of...

, the sound pressure level or the sound pressure

Sound pressure

Sound pressure or acoustic pressure is the local pressure deviation from the ambient atmospheric pressure caused by a sound wave. Sound pressure can be measured using a microphone in air and a hydrophone in water...

. Different values for pain threshold pressure level and pain threshold pressure are found in the literature:

Threshold of Pain
Sound pressure level	Sound pressure
120 dBSPL	20 Pa
130 dBSPL	63 Pa
134 dBSPL	100 Pa
137.5 dBSPL	150 Pa
140 dBSPL	200 Pa

See also

• Absolute threshold of hearing
  Absolute threshold of hearing
  The absolute threshold of hearing is the minimum sound level of a pure tone that an average ear with normal hearing can hear with no other sound present. The absolute threshold relates to the sound that can just be heard by the organism...
  
  
• Dolorimeter
  Dolorimeter
  A dolorimeter is an instrument used to measure pain threshold and pain tolerance. Dolorimetry has been defined as "the measurement of pain sensitivity or pain intensity." There are several kinds of dolorimeter that have been developed...
  
   – an instrument used to measure pain tolerance
• Exposure action value
  Exposure action value
  An Exposure Action Value or Action Value is a limit set on occupational exposure to noise where beyond those values, employers must take steps to monitor the exposure levels. These levels are measured in decibels. The American Occupational Safety and Health Administration set the EAV to...
  
  
• Pain tolerance
  Pain tolerance
  Pain tolerance is the maximum level of pain that a person is able to tolerate. Pain tolerance is distinct from pain threshold .-Factors affecting pain tolerance:...
  
   – the amount of pain that a person can withstand before breaking down emotionally and/or physically
• Phon
  Phon
  The phon was proposed in DIN 45631 and ISO 532 B as a unit of perceived loudness level LN for pure tones by S. S. Stevens.-Definition:The purpose of the phon scale is to compensate for the effect of frequency on the perceived loudness of tones...
  
  
• Sone
  Sone
  The sone was proposed as a unit of perceived loudness by Stanley Smith Stevens in 1936. In acoustics, loudness is the subjective perception of sound intensity...
  
  
• Volume
  Volume
  Volume is the quantity of three-dimensional space enclosed by some closed boundary, for example, the space that a substance or shape occupies or contains....
  
  
• DB(A)