Acute Pain in Cats: Recent Advances in Clinical Assessment

Overview

Journal J Feline Med Surg

Specialty Veterinary Medicine

Date 2018 Oct 16

PMID 30320529

Citations 36

Authors

Paulo V Steagall

Beatriz P Monteiro

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Practical Relevance: Pain assessment has gained much attention in recent years as a means of improving pain management and treatment standards. It has become an elemental part of feline practice with ultimate benefit to feline health and welfare. Currently pain assessment involves mostly the investigation of sensory-discriminative (intensity, location and duration) and affective-motivational (emotional) domains of pain. Specific behaviors associated with acute pain have been identified and constitute the basis for its assessment in cats.

Recent Advances: The publication of pain scales with reported validation - the UNESP-Botucatu multidimensional composite pain scale and the Glasgow feline composite measure pain scale - and species-specific studies have advanced our knowledge on the subject. Facial expressions have also been shown to be different between painful and non-painful cats, and very recently the Feline Grimace Scale has been validated as a tool for acute pain assessment.

Clinical Challenges: Despite recent advances, several challenges still exist. For instance, the effects of disease and sedation on pain scoring/ assessment are unknown. Also, specific painful conditions (eg, dental pain) have not been systematically investigated. The development and validation of instruments for pain assessment by cat owners is warranted, as these tools are currently lacking.

Aims: This article reviews the use, advantages, disadvantages and limitations of the two validated pain scales, and presents a practical, stepwise approach to feline pain recognition and assessment using a dynamic and interactive process. The authors also offer perspectives regarding current challenges and future directions.

Citing Articles

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Comparison of postoperative pain and stress using a multimodal approach in cats: open vs. laparoscopic-assisted ovariohysterectomy.

Jeong C, Yi K, Yu Y, Heo S Front Vet Sci. 2025; 11:1519773.

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Assessment of the nociceptive response to the use of cannabidiol alone and in combination with meloxicam through infrared pupillometry in female dogs undergoing elective ovariohysterectomy.

Casas-Alvarado A, Martinez-Burnes J, Hernandez-Avalos I, Mora-Medina P, Miranda-Cortes A, Dominguez-Oliva A Front Vet Sci. 2024; 11:1380022.

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Comparison of analgesic efficacy of tramadol, morphine and methadone in cats undergoing ovariohysterectomy.

Goich M, Bascunan A, Faundez P, Siel D J Feline Med Surg. 2024; 26(3):1098612X231224662.

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Validation of the Portuguese Version of the Short-Form Glasgow Composite Measure Pain Scale (CMPS-SF) According to COSMIN and GRADE Guidelines.

de Lima M, Trindade P, Pinho R, Oliveira A, Gil J, Almeida T Animals (Basel). 2024; 14(6).

PMID: 38539929 PMC: 10967594. DOI: 10.3390/ani14060831.

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