Abstract
Pain is a common debilitating condition in diabetes; however, sensitivity to pain during the estrous cycle varies and the overall pathophysiology remains poorly understood. The aim of the present study was to investigate pain sensitivity during the estrous cycle in diabetic rats. Adult female rats weighing 220–250 g were maintained on 12-h light/dark cycles. Food and water were available ad libitum. Animals were divided into two groups, healthy and diabetic rats. The estrous cycle phases were monitored by vaginal lavage and pain sensitivity was evaluated by tail-flick test, performed over 60 min during each phase. Data were analyzed by t test and the level of significance was considered to be P < 0.05. Results showed that the diabetic group had a significantly (P < 0.05) higher analgesic index than that of the healthy group. Percentage of pain sensitivity was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in metestrus than that of other phases of the estrous cycle. These results showed that the pattern of neuropathy expression in diabetes varied during estrous cycle, which may be due to fluctuations in sex hormone levels.
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This research was financially supported by Shiraz University.
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Taherianfard, M., Akbarpour, M. & Jelodar, G. Pain sensitivity in diabetic rats during estrous. Comp Clin Pathol 19, 189–192 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00580-009-0830-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00580-009-0830-y