Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Adding dexmedetomidine to eye nerve block in dogs during eye removal
By Irving, William et al.·Published in Veterinary ophthalmology·2024·Eye Clinic for Animals, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Effect of dexmedetomidine added to retrobulbar blockade with lignocaine and bupivacaine in dogs undergoing enucleation surgery.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs undergoing eye removal surgery (enucleation) received a combination of local anesthetics with or without an additional sedative. The dogs that received the sedative had lower breathing rates and required less anesthesia during the procedure, but they also experienced more cases of slow heart rate and high blood pressure. Despite these differences, both groups of dogs had similar pain levels after surgery and did not need extra pain relief. Overall, the sedative did not improve pain management but did affect some vital signs during surgery.
People also search for: dog eye surgery recovery · enucleation surgery pain management · dog anesthesia side effects
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of the addition of dexmedetomidine (BLD) to retrobulbar blockade with combined lignocaine and bupivacaine on nociception. ANIMALS: A total of 17 eyes from 15 dogs. METHODS: Prospective, randomized, masked clinical comparison study. Dogs undergoing unilateral enucleation were randomly assigned into two groups; a retrobulbar administration of lignocaine and bupivacaine in a 1:2 volume ratio combined with either BLD or 0.9% saline (BLS). The total volume of the intraconal injection was calculated at 0.1 mL/cm cranial length. Intraoperative parameters were recorded: heart rate (HR), respiratory rate (RR), end-tidal CO(EtCO) arterial blood pressure (BP), and inspired isoflurane concentration (ISOinsp). Pain scores, heart rate and RR were recorded postoperatively. RESULTS: Dogs receiving BLD (n = 8) had significantly lower intraoperative RR (p = 0.007), and significantly lower ISOinsp (p = 0.037) than dogs in the BLS group (n = 9). Postoperatively heart rate was significantly lower in the BLD group at 1 min (p = 0.025) and 1 h (p = 0.022). There were no other significant differences in intraoperative or postoperative parameters, or in postoperative pain scores (p = 0.354). Dogs receiving BLD had a higher rate of anesthetic events of bradycardia and hypertension (p = 0.027). Analgesic rescue was not needed in either group. CONCLUSIONS: The addition of BLD to retrobulbar anesthesia did not result in a detectable difference in pain scores relative to blockade with lignocaine and bupivacaine alone. Dogs receiving retrobulbar BLD had a significantly lower intraoperative RR and isoflurane requirement and an increased incidence of intraoperative bradycardia and hypertension.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37418492/