%0 Journal Article
%T Effect of Piroxicam and/or Ascorbic Acid on Postoperative Pain in Orchidectomised Goats
%A Richard Oluchukwu Okafor
%A Bolanle Dupe Remi-Adewunmi
%A Samuel Tanko Fadason
%J Journal of Animals
%D 2014
%R 10.1155/2014/923170
%X The study evaluates effects of varied doses of ascorbic acid and piroxicam on behavioural signs of pain in orchidectomised Savannah Brown goats during their postsurgical pain management. The goats were divided into 6 groups of 3 goats each. Orchidectomy was performed on all animals under sedation with xylazine and linear infiltration with lignocaine. After surgery, varied doses of piroxicam (IM) and ascorbic acid (IV) were administered to the goats: Group A = piroxicam, 5£¿mg/kg + ascorbic acid, 100£¿mg/kg; Group B = piroxicam, 5£¿mg/kg + ascorbic acid, 200£¿mg/kg; Group C = piroxicam, 10£¿mg/kg + ascorbic acid, 100£¿mg/kg; Group D = piroxicam, 5£¿mg/kg; Group E: ascorbic acid, 100£¿mg/kg together with antibiotics, procaine penicillin, 20,000£¿IU/kg + streptomycin, 10£¿mg/kg (IM); and Group F (control) received only the antibiotics. After surgery, pain intensity was determined in each goat by numerical rating scale. Vocalisation, teeth grinding, rapid and shallow breathing, tail wagging, occasionally bleating, neck extension, and dorsal lip curling were recorded at varying degrees across the experimental groups. The goats in the control group showed the highest degree of behavioural signs of pain. It is concluded that treatment with a combination of piroxicam and ascorbic acid ameliorated pain more than either of the agents in orchidectomised Savannah Brown goats. 1. Introduction Pain control for routine management procedures is considered one of the most important welfare priorities in livestock production today [1]. Animals in pain reduce their overall level of activity following surgery [2]. Pain associated with various conditions and procedures in animals may be estimated [3]. Pain assessment in animals may be done by one of three approaches: measurements of general body functioning, such as food and water intake and live-weight gain; physiological responses such as plasma cortisol concentrations; and behaviours such as vocalisations [4]. Morton and Griffiths [5] proposed that the study of behavioural patterns constitutes a substantial part of pain assessment and they attempted to define species-specific signs of behaviour indicating pain. Evaluation of behavioural signs has proven to be reliable indicators of pain [6]. Behavioural responses used for pain assessment in goats include: vocalisation, teeth grinding, rapid and shallow breathing [7], standing and lying repeatedly, tail wagging, occasionally bleating, displaying neck extension, dorsal lip curling, kicking, rolling, and hyperventilation [8]. Numerical rating scale (NRS) is used to rate pain
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/jani/2014/923170/