Gender specificity of sucrose induced analgesia in human adults

Sweet, palatable substances such as sucrose are reported to calm infants undergoing routine investigative procedures. The analgesic effect persists in pre pubertal children and adults with a hint of gender dependent variation in the analgesic response. The present study was therefore designed to explore gender specificity of sucrose induced analgesia in adult volunteers utilizing the nociceptive flexion reflex, an objective tool for pain assessment. Nociceptive flexion reflex was recorded, both before and after (up to 15 min) ingestion of 100 ml of 25% sucrose solution in 6 male and 6 female volunteers. In the male volunteers the maximum amplitude of the response was 20.8 +/- 7.7 microV before sucrose ingestion and 22.6 +/- 9.1 microV, 6.6 +/- 0.7 microV, 6.2 +/- 1.1 microV, 7.5 +/- 0.9 microV at 0, 5, 10 and 15 minutes post sucrose ingestion respectively. In female volunteers, the maximum amplitude of the response was 33.7 +/- 17.7 microV before sucrose ingestion and 43.6 +/- 17.2 microV, 7.1 +/- 1.2 microV, 25.9 +/- 16.1 microV, 50.6 +/- 16.3 microV at the same time intervals post sucrose ingestion. The maximum amplitude values were significantly lower in the males at 10 and 15 minutes after sucrose ingestion (P < 0.05). This is the first objective report of gender specificity in sucrose induced analgesia in adult humans. The gender dependent variation in sucrose induced analgesia is prolonged in male (15 min) and short lived in female (5 min) volunteers. This knowledge may have important implications in pain management.