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Analgesic effects of tramadol, carprofen or multimodal analgesia in rats undergoing ventral laparotomy

Lab Animal volume 40, pages 85–93 (2011)Cite this article

Abstract

In this study, the authors evaluated the analgesic efficacy of tramadol (an opioid-like analgesic), carprofen (a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug) and a combination of both drugs (multimodal therapy) in a rat laparotomy model. The authors randomly assigned rats to undergo either surgery (abdominal laparotomy with visceral manipulation and anesthesia) or anesthesia only. Rats in each group were treated with tramadol (12.5 mg per kg body weight), carprofen (5 mg per kg body weight), a combination of tramadol and carprofen (12.5 mg per kg body weight and 5 mg per kg body weight, respectively) or saline (anesthesia control group only; 5 mg per kg body weight). The authors administered analgesia 10 min before anesthesia, 4 h after surgery or (for the rats that received anesthesia only) anesthesia and 24 h after surgery or anesthesia. They measured locomotor activity, running wheel activity, feed and water consumption, body weight and fecal corticosterone concentration of each animal before and after surgery. Clinical observations were made after surgery or anesthesia to evaluate signs of pain and distress. The authors found that carprofen, tramadol and a combination of carprofen and tramadol were all acceptable analgesia regimens for a rat laparotomy model.

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Figure 1: Mean locomotor activity (number of beam interruptions during a 30-min session) in an open field before surgery or (for the rats that received anesthesia only) anesthesia and 1 d after surgery or anesthesia.
Figure 2: Mean amplitude of wheel activity (maximum number of revolutions per h).
Figure 3: Average feed consumption (g per rat per day) in the different treatment groups.
Figure 4: Average water consumption (ml per rat per day) among treatment groups.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Danielle Waxer, James Clark, Page Myers, Sandy Hackney, Joe Hensley and Rodney Chavis for their assistance and support of the research and care of the animals. We thank Dr. Paul Flecknell for his consultation; Dr. Larry Wright for his assistance in literature evaluation; The Brookfield Zoo Endocrinology Lab for carrying out the corticosterone assay; Dr. Mark Cesta for pathology; Eli Ney for imaging; and Dr. Mary Grant, Dr. Mark Hoenerhoff and Dr. Gregory Cannon for manuscript review. This research was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. This article may be the work product of an employee or group of employees of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH), however, the statements, opinions or conclusions contained herein do not necessarily represent the statements, opinions or conclusions of NIEHS, NIH or the United States government.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cellular and Molecular Pathology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC

    Coralie Zegre Cannon &  Angela P. King-Herbert

  2. Biostatistics Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC

    Grace E. Kissling

  3. Comparative Medicine Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC

    David R. Goulding &  Terry Blankenship-Paris

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  1. Coralie Zegre Cannon
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Correspondence to Terry Blankenship-Paris.

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Cannon, C., Kissling, G., Goulding, D. et al. Analgesic effects of tramadol, carprofen or multimodal analgesia in rats undergoing ventral laparotomy. Lab Anim 40, 85–93 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban0311-85

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