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OCR for page 7
INTRODUCTION
In 1992, the National Research Council published a report titled
Recognition and Alleviation of Pain and Distress in Laboratory Animals “to help
scientists, research administrators, Institutional Animals Care and Use
Committees (IACUC), and animal care staff to address the difficult questions of
the presence and alleviation of animal pain and distress” (NRC 1992, p. 1 ).
The need for assistance in this area has persisted, and, with the advent of new
scientific discoveries, the generation of genetically modified animals, and
continued regulatory emphasis on minimizing pain and distress in laboratory
animals, it became evident that the 1992 report had become outdated. The
Institute for Laboratory Animal Research (ILAR) received several requests from
the veterinary and biomedical communities to convene a committee to update
the report. After many discussions with constituents and several sponsors, the
National Academies opted to update the 1992 report as two separate reports,
one on distress and one on pain, because although they are linked in
regulation, they are quite different scientifically (NRC 2008).
This report on the Recognition and Alleviation of Pain in Laboratory
Animals was prepared to help scientists, veterinarians, research
administrators, IACUCS, and animal care staff to understand the basis of animal
pain, recognize and evaluate its presence and severity, and appreciate means
by which pain can be minimized or abolished, according to the charge to the
committee that prepared this report:
The … report will update information based on the current
scientific literature on recognizing and alleviating pain in laboratory
animals. The report will discuss the physiology of pain in commonly
used laboratory species. Specific emphasis will be placed on the
identification of humane endpoints, pharmacologic and non-
pharmacologic principles to control pain, and principles to utilize in
minimizing pain associated with experimental procedures. As with the
first report [on Distress], general guidelines and examples will be given
to aid IACUC members, investigators and animal care staff in making
decisions about protocols using laboratory animals under current
federal regulations and policies.
The committee believes that in most experimental and husbandry
situations laboratory animals need not experience substantial pain and that
prevention and alleviation of pain in laboratory animals is an ethical
imperative. This view, shared by the public and Congress as well as federal
agencies and organizations, is preserved in laws, regulations, policies,
7
OCR for page 8
8 Recognition and Alleviation of Pain in Laboratory Animals
recommendations, and guidelines (presented in Appendix B) that govern the
care and use of animals in research and which require the identification,
minimization, and elimination of sources of pain, unless the scientific merit of
a study demands otherwise. These regulations, policies, and guidelines also
require that institutions develop programs for training personnel in procedures
to ensure that animal pain is minimized.
The purposes of this report are to increase awareness of the sources and
recognition of pain in laboratory animals and to increase ethical sensitivity in
those who use and care for them. The report may also, indirectly, help to
reduce the number of animals needed for experimental purposes because
uncontrolled pain can increase variability in experimental data and so require
the use of more animals. If this report improves investigators’ awareness of
their obligations for the humane care and use of their research animals, it
could even reduce the replication required to establish the generality of their
scientific findings. Such a reduction, however, should always be consistent
with the necessity to validate important scientific findings.
Organization of the report
This report focuses on the principles of recognizing pain and the
pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic methods of minimizing and controlling
pain. It was not planned as a source of information on experimental design,
nor was it designed as a training document, although it is hoped that it will be
useful for this purpose (the report Education and Training in the Care and Use
of Laboratory Animals might be of more direct assistance with the
development of training and education programs; NRC 1991). Chapters 2 and 3
focus on what is known about the biology and physiology of pain and how to
recognize and assess it in animals. Chapters 4 and 5, respectively, provide
information about controlling pain, with species-specific recommendations,
and humane endpoints. The first Appendix provides information on pain as a
study subject, and Appendix 2 lists the regulatory and legal requirements that
pertain to the onset of pain in the use of animals in research.
The intent of this report is to help veterinarians, investigators,
researchers, members of IACUCs, and animal care staff understand pain in
order to adequately manage and if possible avoid it. The committee compiled
the most up-to-date information available but also relied on its scientific
expertise to make recommendations to uphold the principles of humane care
and use of laboratory animals. The committee urges readers to consider this
information carefully and hopes that this report will help link the integrity of
scientific methodology to the humane care of animal subjects.
Prepublication Copy
OCR for page 9
INTRODUCTION 9
References
AWA [Animal Welfare Act]. 1990. Animal Welfare Act. Available at:
http://www.nal.usda.gov/awic/legislat/awa.htm. Accessed June 9
2008.
DHHS [Department of Health and Human Services]. 2002. Public Health Service
Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. Available at:
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/olaw/references/phspol.htm. Accessed
June 9 2008.
NRC [National Research Council]. 1991. Education and Training in the Care and
Use of Laboratory Animals. Washington: National Academies Press.
NRC. 1992. Recognition and Alleviation of Pain and Distress in Laboratory
Animals. Washington: National Academies Press.
NRC. 1996. Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. Washington:
National Academies Press.
NRC. 2008. Recognition and Alleviation of Distress in Laboratory Animals.
Washington: National Academies Press.
Prepublication Copy
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