Objective pain assessment in horses (2014-2018).
Authors: van Loon J P A M, Van Dierendonck M C
Journal: Veterinary journal (London, England : 1997)
Summary
# Objective Pain Assessment in Horses: A Review of Current Tools Accurate pain assessment remains fundamental to equine welfare and treatment efficacy, yet horses' stoic nature and inability to communicate verbally have historically made objective evaluation challenging. Van Loon and Van Dierendonck's 2018 narrative review synthesises recent advances in pain assessment methodology, examining composite pain scales (which combine multiple behavioural and physiological parameters) and facial expression-based scales as the most validated and clinically applicable tools emerging from the literature. Both scale types demonstrate promising sensitivity, specificity and inter-observer reliability across various pain states, though the review highlights that validation remains incomplete for some clinical scenarios and that standardisation across studies is still developing. For practitioners, these tools offer standardised frameworks that can improve clinical decision-making regarding analgesia effectiveness, facilitate consistent communication between team members, and provide measurable criteria when evaluating new pain management techniques. Broader adoption of validated pain scales—particularly in hospitalised and ridden horses—could substantially enhance welfare outcomes and strengthen the evidence base for analgesic interventions across equine medicine and surgery.
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Practical Takeaways
- •Use composite pain scales or facial expression assessments as the most validated objective methods for evaluating your horse's pain response to treatment
- •Standardized pain assessment tools can help you and your veterinarian communicate more clearly about pain severity and track treatment effectiveness over time
- •Objective pain scales are increasingly important for evaluating new pain management strategies and ensuring better welfare outcomes in hospitalized and ridden horses
Key Findings
- •Composite pain scales and facial expression-based pain scales are the most promising objective tools for equine pain assessment
- •Multiple pain assessment tools have been described and partially validated for different pain types in horses
- •Validation metrics including sensitivity, specificity, and inter-observer reliability vary across published pain scales
- •Improved pain scoring could enhance clinical evaluation of analgesic efficacy and support equine welfare improvements