USDA-NIFA Grant Supports Research to Validate Measures of Pain in Young Swine

December 16, 2020 — Sherrie Webb

A team of researchers led by the American Association of Swine Veterinarians is using a $650,000 grant from the US Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture -- and additional grants from the National Pork Board and Iowa Pork Producers Association -- to study and validate behavioral, physiologic, and biomarker-based endpoints that reliably measure pain associated with surgical castration in piglets.

Sherrie Webb, Director of Swine Welfare at AASV, is the project director for the 4-year study titled "Identify and Validate Endpoints for Use in Future Clinical Trials Evaluating Drug Efficacy to Control Pain Associated with Piglet Castration." The study seeks to facilitate consistency and rigor in the evaluation of the effectiveness of analgesic drugs through the development of a research protocol using validated endpoints that are well-defined and reliably measure pain in piglets.

Joining Webb on the research team are Angela Baysinger, Merck Animal Health; Jennifer Brown, Prairie Swine Centre; Hans Coetzee, Kansas State University; Sara Crawford, National Pork Board; Ashley DeDecker, Smithfield Foods; Locke Karriker, Iowa State University; Kelly Lechtenberg, Midwest Veterinary Services; Monique Pairis-Garcia, North Carolina State University; Mhairi Sutherland, Beef+Lamb New Zealand; and Abbie Viscardi, Kansas State University. Additional collaborators include the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Merck Animal Health, and Elanco Animal Health. The project will also rely on input from an advisory group of pharmaceutical companies and fellow academic researchers.

"The long-term goal of this project is to improve pig welfare on-farm by effectively controlling pain associated with on-farm surgical procedures, such as castration, in a manner that is safe for the animal and the consumer and is compliant with US regulation, " Webb said.

"Establishing these validated endpoints will provide meaningful swine-specific references for FDA as they review future submissions for new animal drug approvals with a claim for controlling pain associated with castration of swine," said Webb. "The outcomes from this study will also provide standardized methods for pharmaceutical companies' research and development pursuits in the area of pain control to satisfy the substantial evidence of effectiveness required for the approval of analgesic drugs in swine."

Ultimately, having these validated endpoints will provide consistency, which will aid veterinary practitioners, farmers, and researchers in evaluating efficacy, developing consensus on best practices for pain management, and making future business decisions regarding animal welfare.

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JSHAP Associate Editor and AASV Welfare Director