title: Peripheral nerve injury evokes disabilities and sensory dysfunction in a subpopulation of rats: a closer model to human chronic neuropathic pain?
abstract: Chronic pain conditions for which treatment is sought are characterized usually by complex behavioural disturbances as well as pain. We review here evidence that although chronic constriction injury (CCI) of the sciatic nerve evokes allodynia and hyperalgesia in all rats, persistent social behavioural and sleep disruption occurs only in a subpopulation of animals. The finding that the 'degree of pain', as defined by allodynia and hyperalgesia, is the same in all animals suggests that the complex behavioural disabilities are independent of the level of sensory dysfunction. An absence of correlation between disability and sensory dysfunction is characteristic also of human neuropathic pain. These findings indicate that: (i). in a subpopulation of rats sciatic injury evokes disabilities characteristic of human neuropathic pain conditions; and (ii). testing for sensory dysfunction alone cannot detect this subpopulation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy and Histology (F13), The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
authors.forename: Kevin A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Keay
authors.forename: Claudia R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Monassi
authors.forename: Dane B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Levison
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bandler
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D006930:Hyperalgesia / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D009437:Neuralgia / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D059348:Peripheral Nerve Injuries; D010525:Peripheral Nerves / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010523:Peripheral Nervous System Diseases / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D051381:Rats; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology