Extremely low doses of oxytocin reduce pain sensitivity in men

The effect of extremely low doses of oxytocin (vapor) on the perception of pain (pricking of the finger) is studied on 48 healthy volunteers. Inhalation of oxytocin vapor from the standard solution in doses producing a sensation of smell lowers pain threshold by 56.5%. Inhalation of oxytocin vapor creating no sense of smell has a lower hypalgesic effect. The oxytocin-induced hypalgesia is consistent with reduction in the heart reactivity to pain. Translated fromByulleten' Eksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 122, No. 11, pp. 487–489, November, 1996