Ethical guidelines for investigations of experimental pain in conscious animals.
TL;DR: The Committee for Research and Ethical Issues of the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP®) is concerned with the ethical aspects of studies producing experimental pain and any suffering it may cause in animals.
Abstract: The Committee for Research and Ethical Issues of the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP®) is concerned with the ethical aspects of studies producing experimental pain and any suffering it may cause in animals. Such studies are essential if new and clinically relevant knowledge about the mechanisms of pain is to be acquired. Investigations in conscious animals intended to stimulate chronic pain in man are being performed. Such experiments require careful planning to avoid or at least minimize pain in the animals.
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TL;DR: A peripheral mononeuropathy was produced in adult rats by placing loosely constrictive ligatures around the common sciatic nerve and the postoperative behavior of these rats indicated that hyperalgesia, allodynia and, possibly, spontaneous pain were produced.
Abstract: A peripheral mononeuropathy was produced in adult rats by placing loosely constrictive ligatures around the common sciatic nerve. The postoperative behavior of these rats indicated that hyperalgesia, allodynia and, possibly, spontaneous pain (or dysesthesia) were produced. Hyperalgesic responses to noxious radiant heat were evident on the second postoperative day and lasted for over 2 months. Hyperalgesic responses to chemogenic pain were also present. The presence of allodynia was inferred from the nocifensive responses evoked by standing on an innocuous, chilled metal floor or by innocuous mechanical stimulation, and by the rats' persistence in holding the hind paw in a guarded position. The presence of spontaneous pain was suggested by a suppression of appetite and by the frequent occurrence of apparently spontaneous nocifensive responses. The affected hind paw was abnormally warm or cool in about one-third of the rats. About one-half of the rats developed grossly overgrown claws on the affected side. Experiments with this animal model may advance our understanding of the neural mechanisms of neuropathic pain disorders in humans.
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TL;DR: The main features of the formalin test are described, including the characteristics of the stimulus and how changes in nociceptive behaviour may be measured and interpreted, and it is argued that the peripheral tissue temperature as well as other factors influencing the peripheral inflammation may affect the response.
Abstract: The formalin test for nociception, which is predominantly used with rats and mice, involves moderate, continuous pain generated by injured tissue. In this way it differs from most traditional tests of nociception which rely upon brief stimuli of threshold intensity. In this article we describe the main features of the formalin test, including the characteristics of the stimulus and how changes in nociceptive behaviour may be measured and interpreted. The response to formalin shows an early and a late phase. The early phase seems to be caused predominantly by C-fibre activation due to the peripheral stimulus, while the late phase appears to be dependent on the combination of an inflammatory reaction in the peripheral tissue and functional changes in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. These functional changes seem to be initiated by the C-fibre barrage during the early phase. In mice, the behavioural response in the late phase depends on the ambient temperature. We argue that the peripheral tissue temperature as well as other factors influencing the peripheral inflammation may affect the response, possibly confounding the results obtained with the test. Furthermore, we discuss the methods of recording the response and the value of observing more than one aspect of behaviour. Scoring of several behavioural variables provides a means of assessing motor or sensorimotor function as possible causes for changes in behaviour. In conclusion, the formalin test is a valuable addition to the battery of methods available to study nociception.
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TL;DR: It is suggested that the early phase is due to a direct effect on nociceptors and that prostaglandins do not play an important role during this phase, and the late phase seems to be an inflammatory response with inflammatory pain that can be inhibited by anti‐inflammatory drugs.
Abstract: The formalin test in mice is a valid and reliable model of nociception and is sensitive for various classes of analgesic drugs. The noxious stimulus is an injection of dilute formalin (1% in saline) under the skin of the dorsal surface of the right hindpaw. The response is the amount of time the animals spend licking the injected paw. Two distinct periods of high licking activity can be identified, an early phase lasting the first 5 min and a late phase lasting from 20 to 30 min after the injection of formalin. In order to elucidate the involvement of inflammatory processes in the two phases, we tested different classes of drugs in the two phases independently. Morphine, codeine, nefopam, and orphenadrine, as examples of centrally acting analgesics, were antinociceptive in both phases. In contrast, the non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs indomethacin and naproxen and the steroids dexamethasone and hydrocortisone inhibited only the late phase, while acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) and paracetamol were antinociceptive in both phases. The results demonstrate that the two phases in the formalin test may have different nociceptive mechanisms. It is suggested that the early phase is due to a direct effect on nociceptors and that prostaglandins do not play an important role during this phase. The late phase seems to be an inflammatory response with inflammatory pain that can be inhibited by anti-inflammatory drugs. ASA and paracetamol seem to have actions independent of their inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis and they also have effects on non-inflammatory pain.
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TL;DR: One can do something wrong to a tree, but it makes no sense to speak of wronging it as discussed by the authors. But can one wrong an animal? Many philosophers think not, and many research scientists adopt the attitude that the u...
Abstract: One can do something wrong to a tree, but it makes no sense to speak of wronging it. Can one wrong an animal? Many philosophers think not, and many research scientists adopt the attitude that the u...
45 citations
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