Anayántzin P. Heredia-Antúnez, Bioterio General, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Estado de México; Departamento de Etología, Fauna Silvestre y Animales de Laboratorio, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Ciudad de México. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México
Currently, animal research is controlled under strict regulatory policies, and it is a mandate that any research project be reviewed and approved by an ethics committee prior to its development. From an ethical point of view, it is necessary that research proposals generally comply with two conditions: firstly, that the use serves a socially justifiable or acceptable purpose, and secondly, that every effort has been made to comply with the three R proposed in 1959 (replacement, reduction and refinement). In this sense, the harm-benefit analysis seeks to ensure that animal studies are performed only when strictly necessary and justified, in accordance with current ethical and regulatory guidelines and with an adequate balance between scientific progress and animal welfare. The objective of this work is to describe this concept to support the members of committees for the care and use of laboratory animals as an evaluation tool to guarantee that the use of animals in research is ethically and scientifically justified, promoting animal welfare.
Keywords: Animal experimentation. Harm-benefit analysis. Animal ethics.
