Partial Sciatic Nerve Transection

Partial sciatic nerve transection (PST) of the sciatic nerve of rats and mice is described as a model of painful neuropathy. The rationale for developing this model was to establish a simple partial nerve injury without application of foreign material. In contrast to the frequently used model of chronic constriction injury (CCI), PST allows to relate animal behavior and drug effects to endoneurial changes, undisturbed by major epineurial inflammation. PST is easy to perform in rats and mice and leads to reproducible pain-related behavior for 5 wk or longer.