Roman T. Skarda

Local and Regional Anesthesia in Ruminants and Swine

This article reviews the use of popular local and regional anesthetic and analgesic techniques for surgical anesthesia and postoperative analgesia in cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs. The emphasis is on proper technique, the use of a 2% lidocaine hydrochloride solution, and the epidural administration of ɑ2-adrenoceptor agonists and opioids for producing intra- and postoperative analgesia in ruminants and swine while preserving consciousness and minimizing side effects.

The Pharmacology of Local Anesthetics

Understanding of the pharmacology of local anesthesia is important for selection of a local anesthetic for use in equine standing surgery. In general, the action potential is inhibited by local anesthetics by preventing the influx of sodium ions across the axonal membrane. The physicochemical properties of each local anesthetic determine the onset of action, potency, and duration of action. Procaine, chlorprocaine, lidocaine, and mepivacaine are the local anesthetics still used clinically in horses; lidocaine is the most widely used. The future of equine local anesthesia may see the introduction of longer acting, more potent drugs currently used clinically in humans and dogs as well as drugs not classified as local anesthetics--alpha-2 agonists and opioids--for use in epidural anesthesia.

Analgesic, hemodynamic and respiratory effects of caudal epidurally administered ropivacaine hydrochloride in mares

Objective To determine the analgesic, hemodynamic and respiratory effects, sedation and ataxia in mares of caudal epidural administration of ropivacaine hydrochloride solution. Study design Prospective, single-dose trial. Animals Ten healthy mares weighing from 475 to 565 kg. Methods Intravascular catheters and an epidural needle were placed after infiltration of the skin and subcutaneous tissues with 2% lidocaine. Ropivacaine (0.5%, 8 or 9 mL) was then injected epidurally at the fifth sacral or sacrococcygeal vertebrae, respectively. Analgesia was determined by lack of sensory perception to electrical stimulation (> 40 milliamps) and absence of response to needle pricks extending from coccyx to S2 dermatomes. Electrocardiogram, heart and respiratory rates, rectal temperature, arterial blood pressure, arterial acid-base (pH, standard bicarbonate and base excess), gas tensions (PO2, PCO2), PCV, oxyhemoglobin and total solids concentrations, and numerical scores of perineal analgesia, sedation (head drop), and ataxia (position of pelvic limbs) were determined before and during a 5-hour testing period. Analysis of variance (anova) with repeated measures was used to detect significant (p < 0.05) differences of mean values from baseline. Results Epidurally administered ropivacaine induced variable analgesia extending bilaterally from coccyx to S2 (three mares), coccyx to S3 (four mares), and coccyx to S4 (three mares), with minimal sedation, ataxia, and cardiovascular and respiratory disturbances of mares. Perineal analgesia was attained at 10 ± 4 minutes and lasted for 196 ±42 minutes (mean ± SD). Five mares demonstrated inadequate perineal analgesia, probably attributable to deviation of the spinal needle from the midline. They were successfully blocked with ropivacaine on another occasion. Epidural ropivacaine significantly reduced repiratory rates of mares and did not change other variables from baseline. Conclusions and clinical relevance Ropivacaine (0.5%, 8 mL 500 kg-1) can be administered caudal epidurally to produce prolonged (> 2.5 hours) bilateral perineal analgesia with minimal sedation, ataxia, and circulatory and respiratory disturbances in standing mares.