OECD Guidance Document on the Recognition, Assessment, and Use of Clinical Signs as Humane Endpoints for Experimental Animals Used in Safety Evaluation

A humane endpoint can be described as: “The earliest indicator in an animal experiment of (potential) pain and/or distress that, within the context of moral justification and scientific endpoints to be met, can be used to avoid or limit pain and/or distress by taking actions such as humane killing or terminating or alleviating the pain and distress’ (Hendriksen and Morton, 1999)”. (Hendriksen and Morton, 1999)

Humane endpoints in toxicological safety assessments aim to predict severe pain, severe distress, suffering or imminent death before the animal actually experiences these effects. The Guidance Document on the Recognition, Assessment, and Use of Clinical Signs as Humane Endpoints for Experimental Animals Used in Safety Evaluation was published in 2000 by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The guidance document provides information how to recognise, assess and use clinical signs indicative of toxicity or distress as humane endpoints. The report is available here.

In addition to the OECD report, the humane endpoints website contains a wealth of further information about humane endpoints in animal research.