The influence of housing condition on autotomy following dorsal rhizotomy in rats

Abstract
Male rats (44) were subjected to unilateral intradural section of dorsal roots T13-L6. Of these, 10 were housed alone and 34 were housed with female rats. Each of the 10 animals housed alone self-mutilated to an extreme degree, with 7 cannibalizing the denervated limb. Only 1 of the animals housed with a female showed any sign of self-biting, and this was a minor, isolated incident. These results are discussed with particular reference to dorsal rhizotomy in rats serving as a model of chronic pain.