Giorgia della Rocca
Study Centre on Animal Pain
With the advance of scientific knowledge, it was found that all animals, the octopus birds from reptiles to mammals, have the neuroanatomical and neuropharmacological components necessary for the transduction, transmission and perception of noxious stimuli. Lately pain control in animals from disease has therefore become widely recognized as an essential component of veterinary care. However, research has shown that analgesics are still not widely used in general veterinary practice, mainly because of the difficulty in recognizing the presence of states pain. At present, the diagnosis of pain in animals can be made on the basis of an estimate of the anthropomorphic potential level of pain perceived by the animal and the observation of his behavior.
animals, as well as human patients not compiling it, I can not express in words the presence of pain, but in exactly the same way as men, they perceive it and suffer the consequences. An uncontrolled pain has adverse effects, could result in chronic pain with obvious impact on quality of life of the animal. Knowing how to recognize and treat pain is an essential component of veterinary care.
The IASP (International Association for the Study of Pain) defines pain "an unpleasant sensory and emotional, associated with an actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage."
Having established that human patients not compiling it as babies, small children, people with dementia are capable of feeling pain, the IASP has led to state that "the inability to communicate in any way does not deny the possibility that a Everyone is feeling pain ... This statement may relate to another group of patients without compiling it: the animals.
The experience of pain can be summed up in three components: 1) nociception, which is the activation of specific receptors (nociceptors) that can be activated by noxious stimuli (transduction) and progression of the stimulus along afferent nerve fibers that to convey midollo spinale e poi ai centri soprasegmentali (trasmissione); 2) la processazione e l’interpretazione di tali segnali entranti dalla corteccia cerebrale, che dà luogo alla percezione cosciente del dolore e alle conseguenti risposte emozionali; 3) variazioni comportamentali in risposta al dolore. Con il progredire delle conoscenze scientifiche, è stato appurato che tutti gli animali, dai molluschi agli uccelli, dai rettili ai mammiferi, posseggono le componenti neuroanatomiche e neurofisiologiche necessarie
per la trasduzione, la trasmissione e la percezione degli stimoli nocivi. E’anche stato stabilito che nell’uomo e negli animali nocicettori e fibre nervose sono virtualmente identici. In sostanza, non c’è ombra di dubbio che anche gli animali siano in grado di percepire il dolore a livello cosciente e non solo come stimolo riflesso. Stimoli dolorosi per l’uomo lo sono dunque anche per i nostri animali. [5]
La possibilità di provare dolore è peraltro suffragata dal fatto che, quando possono, gli animali sono istintivamente portati ad assumere composti dotati di azione analgesica. Studi condotti in ratti artritici e sani hanno dimostrato che, potendo scegliere tra
l’abbeverarsi con acqua dolcificata o acqua contenente suprafen, un oppioide, i primi optavano per questa seconda scelta, a differenza di ratti sani che invece preferivano l’acqua zuccherata. Inoltre il grado di auto-medicazione era perfettamente proporzionale alla severità pain. The same was observed in studies with chickens, animals are not exactly renowned for their intelligence, where the amount of food intake medicated with NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) was directly related to the degree of joint pathology. In a study of more avian species, in which NSAIDs were replaced with opioid drugs, the medication was likely to lead to the onset of comas ... [6]
In the last two decades have also been numerous changes to the role of animals in society. The development of strong emotional bonds between humans and their pets has led to greater attention animal welfare, including prevention or treatment of any of the pain. [5]
5. Grant D.: Concepts of pain management in animals. By: Debbie Grant:
Pain Management in Small Animals. Elsevier, 2006, 1-19
6. Grant D.: Evidence That animals feel pain and Its Consequences. By: Debbie Grant:
Pain Management in Small Animals. Elsevier, 2006, 21-38
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