Scorpion Venom Component; BmK AGAP Potentiates the analgesic effects of lidocaine during sciatic nerve block

Abstract

Various analgesic adjuvants, including opioids, have been tested and demonstrated to be clinically beneficial when added to local anesthetics to increase the duration of analgesia with the risk of various adverse effects. This study was designed to test the hypothesis that a scorpion venom component, BmK AGAP, may have a synergistic effect with lidocaine. We performed partial sciatic nerve ligation on 84 rats to induce a rapid onset and long-lasting mechanical allodynia. An equal volume (600µl) of lidocaine and BmK AGAP were prepared with saline. The rats were randomly assigned to one of seven groups. Group A (n=12) received saline as the control; Group B (n=12) received lidocaine alone; Group C (n=12) received BmK AGAP alone; Group D, E, F and G (n= 12 each) received lidocaine and different concentrations of BmK AGAP combined. The von Frey filaments were used to assess mechanical allodynia in the rats. We observed a decrease in pain intensity and a prolonged duration of analgesia in rats that received BmK AGAP with lidocaine BmK AGAP with lidocaine decreased pain intensity and increased the duration of analgesia.