Multi-user equipment approved in grant 2017/12815-0: Raio-X ATAL-9 Wi-Fi + Emissor VET-20T - POSKOM

Abstract

Pain is the main cause of animal suffering. It is not possible to treat pain without identifying the phenomenon, hence the importance of validated tools to guarantee a precise evaluation of pain and the qualitative and temporal effect of analgesics. Once pain is precisely evaluated, the other challenge is to search for new therapeutic strategies to provide antialgic therapy. We propose two major challenges: 1) to validate scales to assess pain and quality of life in animals and 2) to treat acute and chronic pain by pharmacological and non-conventional methods. For the former it is proposed to clinically validate the pain scales in cats (short version of the Unesp-Botucatu scale already established), horses and cattle, which have been validated experimentally in the previous project; to develop new tools to evaluate equine pain, including body language and quality of life and validate pain scales for the asinine, ovine and caprine species. For each scale, after extensive video recording work, we will construct etograms, video editing and analysis by evaluators, followed by statistical modeling validated in previous studies and with methodology considered as the only validated instrument available in the literature (MEROLA; MILLS, 2016). As pain assessment only matters when animals benefit from treatment, the second appeal is to treat pain and improve the quality of life of animals. To achieve this demand we will evaluate accurate sedative and analgesic protocols through pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic modeling in horses and dogs; we will advance in the study of complementary techniques (acupuncture, phytotherapy e implant of stem cells) and we will try to increase precision of the spinal anesthetic blocks guided by ultrasonography. (AU)