Lowering barometric pressure aggravates mechanical allodynia and hyperalgesia in a rat model of neuropathic pain

Jun Sato, Hirohumi Morimae, Yusuke Seino, Taku Kobayashi, Noriyuki Suzuki, Kazue Mizumura

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

30 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

To examine the effects of meteorological change on the pain-related behaviors of neuropathic rats, animals with a chronic Constriction injury (CCI) to the sciatic nerve were exposed to low barometric pressure (LP), 20 mmHg below the natural atmospheric pressure in a climate-controlled room. CCI caused a decreased hindpaw withdrawal threshold to yon Frey hair (VFH) stimulation (mechanical allodynia) and prolonged duration of hindpaw withdrawal in response to pinprick stimulation (mechanical hyperalgesia). When the CCI rats were exposed to LP, both these pain-related behaviors were aggravated, whereas no change was seen in a group of controls. In the CCI rats sympathectomy inhibited this LP-induced augmentation of pain-related behaviors. These results show that LP intensifies the abnormalities in the pain-related behaviors of neuropathic rats, and that sympathetic activity contributes to the LP effect.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)21-24
Number of pages4
JournalNeuroscience Letters
Volume266
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 30-04-1999
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Neuroscience

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