thiopental and detomidine

To evaluate anesthetic effects of 4 drug combinations used for total intravenous anesthesia of horses undergoing surgical removal of an abdominal testis.. Clinical trial.. 32 healthy cryptorchid horses.. Horses were sedated with xylazine and butorphanol and were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 groups: induction of anesthesia with ketamine and diazepam and maintenance with bolus administration of ketamine and xylazine (KD/KX); induction and maintenance of anesthesia with bolus administration of tiletamine-zolazepam, ketamine, and detomidine (TKD); induction and maintenance of anesthesia with continuous infusion of xylazine, guaifenesin, and ketamine; and induction and maintenance of anesthesia with continuous infusion of guaifenesin and thiopental. Horses that moved 3 consecutive times in response to surgical stimulation or for which surgery time was > 60 minutes were administered an inhalant anesthetic, and data from these horses were excluded from analysis.. Quality of induction was not significantly different among groups. Muscle relaxation and analgesia scores were lowest for horses given KD/KX, but significant differences among groups were not detected. Horses anesthetized with TKD had a significantly greater number of attempts to stand, compared with the other groups, and mean quality of recovery from anesthesia for horses in the TKD group was significantly worse than for the other groups. Anesthesia, surgery, and recovery times were not significantly different among groups.. Results suggest that all 4 drug combinations can be used to induce short-term anesthesia for abdominal cryptorchidectomy in horses. However, horses receiving TKD had a poorer recovery from anesthesia, often requiring assistance to stand.

Topics: Adrenergic alpha-Agonists; Analgesia; Analgesics; Anesthesia, Intravenous; Anesthetics, Combined; Anesthetics, Dissociative; Anesthetics, Intravenous; Animals; Anti-Anxiety Agents; Blood Pressure; Cryptorchidism; Diazepam; Guaifenesin; Heart Rate; Horse Diseases; Horses; Imidazoles; Ketamine; Male; Thiopental; Tiletamine; Xylazine; Zolazepam

This prospective clinical study compared the physiological effects of two commonly used anaesthetic induction techniques in horses maintained with halothane. One hundred horses admitted for elective surgery were randomly allocated to receive either guaiphenesin (to effect) and thiopentone (5 mg/kg), or detomidine (20 microg/kg) and ketamine (2 mg/kg) for the induction of anaesthesia after acepromazine premedication. Anaesthesia was maintained with halothane in oxygen. There were no significant differences in breed, age, sex, weight, type of surgery and duration of anaesthesia between the groups. Immediately after induction of anaesthesia heart rate was higher after guaiphenesin and thiopentone, and arterial blood pressure was higher after detomidine and ketamine. Thereafter hypotension, often necessitating an infusion of dobutamine, developed in both groups. Arterial blood gases and respiratory rates were similar in the two groups. There were no significant differences between the groups in the subjectively scored quality of induction and recovery, or in recovery time.

Topics: Analgesics; Anesthesia, General; Anesthetics, Dissociative; Anesthetics, Inhalation; Anesthetics, Intravenous; Animals; Blood Pressure; Drug Therapy, Combination; Expectorants; Female; Guaifenesin; Halothane; Heart Rate; Horses; Imidazoles; Ketamine; Male; Prospective Studies; Surgical Procedures, Operative; Thiopental

Topics: Anesthesia, General; Anesthesia, Local; Animals; Halothane; Horses; Imidazoles; Preanesthetic Medication; Thiopental