This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a colleague Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Web of Science (5) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Kissin, E. Y. Articles by Kissin, I. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Kissin, E. Y. Articles by Kissin, I. Related Collections Pain Pharmacology

---

PAIN MEDICINE

The Effects of Intraarticular Resiniferatoxin in Experimental Knee-Joint Arthritis

Eugene Y. Kissin, MD^*, Cristina F. Freitas, BA, and Igor Kissin, MD, PhD

*Arthritis Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts and Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Eugene Kissin, MD, Boston University School of Medicine, 715 Albany Street, E-5, Boston, MA 02118–2526. Address e-mail to ekissin{at}arthritis.bu.edu.

In this study we sought to determine whether an intraarticular administration of a vanilloid agonist resiniferatoxin (RTX) produces an analgesic effect in experimental arthritis. Knee joint inflammation was induced in rats by intraarticular carrageenan (2%, 30 µL). Pain score and left/right hind leg weight distribution ratio were used to assess pain behavior. Changes in knee dimensions were evaluated by measuring external circumference and intraarticular area (ultrasound scanning). The intraarticular administration of RTX (0.0003% or 0.003%, 30 µL) provided a significant analgesic effect. Twenty-four hours after RTX administration, the pain score was reduced from 15.1 ± 4.7 to 6.9 ± 4.4 (P < 0.01) with 0.0003% and was abolished (P < 0.0001) with 0.003%. The improvement in weight distribution ratio lasted for several days after the RTX administration. Reduction in knee circumference demonstrated that intraarticular RTX suppressed the carrageenan-induced edema by at least one third. Ultrasound scanning revealed no RTX-induced decrease of the intraarticular area. The experiments demonstrated that intraarticular RTX inhibits pain behavior in knee-joint arthritis and that this effect is dose-dependent. These results suggest a new direction for peripheral analgesia.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				K. Ueda, F. Tsuji, T. Hirata, K. Ueda, M. Murai, H. Aono, M. Takaoka, and Y. Matsumura Preventive Effect of SA13353 [1-[2-(1-Adamantyl)ethyl]-1-pentyl-3-[3-(4-pyridyl)propyl]urea], a Novel Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 1 Agonist, on Ischemia/Reperfusion-Induced Renal Injury in Rats J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther., April 1, 2009; 329(1): 202 - 209. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]