Preventive Effects of Forced Exercise against Alcohol-induced Physical Dependency and Reduction of Pain Perception Threshold

BACKGROUND: Treatment of postabstinence syndrome of alcohol is one of the major strategies of alcoholism treatment. Exercise can be modulated major brain pathways such as a reward system and pain perception centers. The aim of this study was to evaluation the effects of forced exercise in the management of alcohol dependence and pain perception alteration which induced by alcoholism. METHODS: 72 adult male rats were divided into 2 major groups: (1) 40 of them was divided into groups of positive control (alcohol dependent) negative control and alcohol dependent groups under treatment by forced exercise, diazepam (0.4 mg/kg) and forced exercise in combination with diazepam and alcohol withdrawal signs, and blood cortisols, were measured in this groups. (2) 32 rats were divided into control, alcohol dependent (without treatment), and alcohol-dependent groups under treatment by forced exercise or indometacin (5 mg/kg) and then pain perception was assessed by using writhing test, tail-flick and hot plate test. RESULTS: Forced exercise, diazepam, and their combinations significantly attenuates withdrawal syndrome to 20 ± 2, 22 ± 1.3 and 16 ± 2 and blood cortisol level to 6.8 ± 1.3,7.9 ± 1.2 and 5.8 ± 1.1, respectively, in comparison with the positive control group (P < 0.05 and P < 0.001). In alcohol dependent animal under treatment by forced exercise, pain response significantly inhibited with 37%, 57% and 38% decreases in writhing test, hot plate, and tail-flick test, respectively, in comparison with alcohol dependent (without treatment) group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggested that forced exercise can be useful as adjunct therapy in alcoholism patient and also can be effective in modulation of pain threshold reduction that was induced by alcohol dependency.