Static Weight Bearing Touch: Incapacitance Test

Presentation

Bioseb's Incapacitance Test
(Static Weight Bearing):
The New Centor Touch Console

While normal rats and mice distribute weight equally on both paws, the ratio of weight distribution between injured and non injured paw is a natural measurement of the level of discomfort in the injured paw of a rodent, which correlates with the Paw Pressure Analgesia Meter (Randall and Sellito test). Bioseb Incapacitance Test or Static Weight Bearing (SWB Touch) Test allows you to measure this weight distribution and thus to easily and accurately estimate the level of discomfort.

By continuously measuring the weight borne by each paw, Bioseb's Static Weight Bearing Incapacitance Test allows the objective measurement of spontaneous pain by assessing the postural equilibrium, thus opening research fields not available when using traditional methods (like the Randall & Selitto test), which can only measure nociceptive thresholds and pain sensitivity using experimental nociceptive stimuli.

Research applications for Bioseb's Static Weight Bearing Incapacitance Test include nerve or tissue injury, Neuropathy, Carrageenin, Incision recovery, osteo-arthrisis, cartilage degeneration, inflammation models (CFA), peripheric nerve injury models, mechanical hyperalgia models, bone cancer pain models, and much more...

Operating principle

During the static weight bearing test, the rodent (rat or mouse) is placed into a holder holder where the animal is comfortably maintained while his hind paws rest on two separate sensor plates. The animal stands and makes a natural adjustment to the degree of pain by adapting weight distribution on both rear paws.

The spontaneous value of the weight applied on each sensor is displayed on the LCD screen of the control unit, which can also show statistical calculations. Now with a brand new touch-screen console! Using the optional remote foot-switch, the operator can start/stop the test hands-free. No PC is required during the experiment, but you have the option to send data to a software through the integrated RS-232 interface.

Bioseb's new Centor Touch Console : Screenshot

Main functionalities

Bioseb Incapacitance Test (Static Weight Bearing) offers numerous unique and innovative features for facilitating your research on nociception and analgesia :

• A non pain-inducing method to measure discomfort: The animal stands and makes a natural adjustment to the degree of pain by adapting weight distribution on both rear paws.

• An objective spontaneous pain measurement solution: Dual channel scale based measurement is done independently of the operator’s reaction time or subjective judgment about the animal’s flinching.

• An easy and precise instrument: No restraint requirements, a footswitch to tare scales, direct display of the average value on the LCD for each of the back paws.

• A stand alone instrument: No PC is required for running the incapacitance test, although you have the possibility to send collected data from the instrument to a PC through the integrated RS232 interface. It can also be run on battery.

• The Incapacitance (Static Weight Bearing) Test allows the user to compute and display statistics (mean, sd) for groups of rodents (rats or mice) during the measurement process.

• Units are selected by the user in grams, Newtons or oz/lbs.

• The Instrument has an internal memory of up to 200 individual values (ie 1 animal, 2 paws) or up to 200 groups when the statistics are used. Those values are available for editing directly on the sceen, or to be printed out or transferred to a PC, later on. Transfert includes date and time for glp protocols.

• Independent platform and control unit: a 1 meter cable allows some distance between the animal and the operator, reducing the placement time.