AUTHOR=Watanabe Ryota , Doodnaught Graeme M. , Evangelista Marina C. , Monteiro Beatriz P. , Ruel Hélène L. M. , Steagall Paulo V. TITLE=Inter-Rater Reliability of the Feline Grimace Scale in Cats Undergoing Dental Extractions JOURNAL=Frontiers in Veterinary Science VOLUME=7 YEAR=2020 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2020.00302 DOI=10.3389/fvets.2020.00302 ISSN=2297-1769 ABSTRACT=

This study aimed to evaluate the inter-rater reliability of the Feline Grimace Scale (FGS) in cats undergoing dental extractions and the effects of the caregiver's presence on the FGS scores. Twenty-four cats (6 ± 3.3 years old; 4.9 ± 1.7 kg) undergoing oral treatment were included in a prospective, blinded, randomized, clinical study. They underwent treatment under general anesthesia (acepromazine-hydromorphone-propofol-isoflurane-meloxicam-local anesthetic blocks) at day 1 and were discharged at day 6. Images of cat faces were captured from video recordings with or without the caregiver's presence at 6 h postoperatively (day 1), day 6, and before and after rescue analgesia. Images were randomized and independently evaluated by four raters using the FGS [five action units (AU): ear position, orbital tightening, muzzle tension, whiskers change, and head position; score 0–2 for each]. Inter-rater reliability and the effects of the caregiver's presence were analyzed with intraclass correlation coefficient [single measures (95% confidence interval)] and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, respectively (p < 0.05). A total of 91 images were scored. Total FGS scores showed good inter-rater reliability [0.84 (0.77–0.89)]. Reliability for each AU was: ears [0.68 (0.55–0.78)], orbital tightening [0.76 (0.65–0.84)], muzzle [0.56 (0.43–0.69)], whiskers [0.64 (0.50–0.76)], and head position [0.74 (0.63–0.82)]. The FGS scores were not different with [0.075 (0–0.325)] or without [0.088 (0–0.525)] the caregivers' presence (p = 0.12). The FGS is a reliable tool for pain assessment in cats undergoing dental extractions. The caregiver's presence did not affect FGS scores.