Wolff's Transformation Law

Wolff's Law is a statement that was formulated by Joseph Wolf in the 19th century and describes how pain prevents the body from moving. This means that if a person is in pain, their body will remain at rest or move at a slower speed than without pain.

Wolf discovered this law in his experiments with surgical operations. He noticed that when surgeons perform knee surgery by cutting through the skin, patients often react with pain. When patients feel pain during surgery, they tend to sit very quietly or even motionless. This fact surprised Wolff because he did not expect that physical pain could have such a strong effect on body movement.

Wolf first described his transformation law in his book “A Treatise on Joint Detumescence and Fissure” (1829). It was later mentioned by Thomas Addison in his article “Rules of Surgery,” which he wrote in 1758. From this article Wolf