Effect of Gabapentin and Baclofen on Histology Study in Neuropathic Pain

Abstract

Neuropathic pain resulted from injury to nerves is often resistant to current treatments and can seriously cause chronic pain if no appropriate treatment is given. This study was designed to prove the effectiveness of gabapentin and baclofen in increasing latency time toward thermal stimulus and recovering the morphology of dorsal horn of spinal cord in neuropathic-induced chronic pain. Forty mice were divided into 8 groups i.e sham, negative control, gabapentin at three different doses (10, 30, 100 nmol) and baclofen at three different doses (1, 10, 30 nmol). Neuropathic condition was induced by ligation of sciatic nerve with Partial Sciatic Nerve Ligation (PSNL) method. Gabapentin and baclofen were administrated intrathecally once a day for seven days, a week after neuropathic induction. Latency time toward thermal stimulus was measured on days 0, 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 10, 12 and 14 after induction. Histology of the dorsal horn of spinal cord tissue was examined by haematoxylline-eosin staining. The results showed that intrathecal injection of gabapentin and baclofen significantly increased latency time of mice toward thermal stimulus compared with negative control. Gabapentin and baclofen are effective as treatment for neuropathic pain. They can also help the recovery process of the histology in dorsal horn in neuropathic pain.