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REVIEW article

Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Veterinary Neurology and Neurosurgery
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fvets.2025.1534685
This article is part of the Research Topic Reviews in Veterinary Neurology and Neurosurgery View all 13 articles

Neuroanatomy of Spinal Nociception and Pain in Dogs and Cats: A practical review for the veterinary clinician

Provisionally accepted
Tenna Remler Pedersen Tenna Remler Pedersen 1Mette Berendt Mette Berendt 1Clare Rusbridge Clare Rusbridge 2*
  • 1 Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Capital Region of Denmark, Denmark
  • 2 School of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, England, United Kingdom

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Chronic pain is a prevalent condition in companion animals and poses significant welfare challenges. To address these concerns effectively, veterinary clinicians must have a comprehensive understanding of the neuroanatomy of nociception and the intricate processes underlying pain perception. This knowledge is essential for planning and implementing targeted treatment strategies. However, much of the existing information on pain mechanisms is derived from studies on rodents or humans, highlighting the need for further translational research to bridge this gap for veterinary applications. This review aims to provide veterinary clinicians with an in-depth overview of the spinal nociceptive pathways in the dog and cat, tracing the journey from nociceptor activation to cortical processing in the brain.Additionally, the review explores factors influencing nociceptive signalling and pain perception. By enhancing the understanding of these fundamental physiological processes, this work seeks to lay the groundwork for developing effective therapies to manage the complexities of chronic pain in companion animals.

    Keywords: Chronic Pain, Maladaptive Pain, nociceceptive modulation, periaquecductal gray, rexed laminae, Spinocervicothalamic tract, Spinothalamic pathway, Thalamus

    Received: 26 Nov 2024; Accepted: 04 Feb 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Pedersen, Berendt and Rusbridge. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Clare Rusbridge, School of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH, England, United Kingdom

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.