Neurobiology of anesthetic-surgical stress and induced behavioral changes in dogs and cats: A review

Vet World Vol.14 February-2021 Article-10

Review Article

Veterinary World, 14(2): 393-404

https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2021.393-404

I. Hernández-Avalos¹, E. Flores-Gasca², D. Mota-Rojas³, A. Casas-Alvarado⁴, A. E. Miranda-Cortés¹, and A. Domínguez-Oliva¹

1. Department of Biological Sciences, Clinical Pharmacology and Veterinary Anesthesia, Faculty of Higher Studies Cuautitlán, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, State of Mexico 54714, Mexico.
2. Department of Veterinary Surgery, Faculty of Higher Studies Cuautitlán, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, State of Mexico 54714, Mexico.
3. Neurophysiology of Pain, Behavior and Assessment of Welfare in Domestic Animals, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Mexico City 04960, Mexico.
4. Master in Agricultural Sciences. Animal Welfare, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Mexico City 04960, Mexico.

Background and Aim: The anesthetic-surgical stress response consists of metabolic, neuroendocrine, hemodynamic, immunological, and behavioral adaptations through chemical mediators such as the adrenocorticotropic hormone, growth hormone, antidiuretic hormone, cortisol, aldosterone, angiotensin II, thyroid-stimulating hormone, thyroxine, triiodothyronine, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, catecholamines, insulin, interleukin (IL)-1, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and prostaglandin E-2. Behavioral changes include adopting the so-called prayer posture, altered facial expressions, hyporexia or anorexia, drowsiness, sleep disorders, restriction of movement, licking or biting the injured area, and vocalizations. Overall, these changes are essential mechanisms to counteract harmful stimuli. However, if uncontrolled surgical stress persists, recovery time may be prolonged, along with increased susceptibility to infections in the post-operative period. This review discusses the neurobiology and most relevant organic responses to pain and anesthetic-surgical stress in dogs and cats. It highlights the role of stress biomarkers and their influence on autonomous and demeanor aspects and emphasizes the importance of understanding and correlating all factors to provide a more accurate assessment of pain and animal welfare in dogs and cats throughout the surgical process.

Keywords: cats, dogs, neurobiology, pain, stress, welfare.

How to cite this article: Hernández-Avalos I, Flores-Gasca E, Mota-Rojas D, Casas-Alvarado A, Miranda-Cortés AE, Domínguez-Oliva A (2021) Neurobiology of anesthetic-surgical stress and induced behavioral changes in dogs and cats: A review, Veterinary World, 14(2): 393-404.

Received: 24-08-2020 Accepted: 08-01-2021 Published online: 11-02-2021

Corresponding author: I. Hernández-Avalos E-mail: mvziha@hotmail.com

DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2021.393-404

Copyright: Hernández-Avalos, et al. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.