Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Ephedrine before anesthesia helps prevent low blood pressure in cats
By Egger, Christine et al.·Published in The Canadian veterinary journal = La revue veterinaire canadienne·2009·Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Efficacy of preanesthetic intramuscular administration of ephedrine for prevention of anesthesia-induced hypotension in cats and dogs.
Plain-English summary
Ten cats and eight dogs were given anesthesia to see if a medication called ephedrine could help prevent low blood pressure during the procedure. The cats that received saline (a saltwater solution) experienced significant drops in blood pressure shortly after anesthesia began, while those given ephedrine had a delayed drop, not falling below a critical level until later. In dogs, both groups showed drops in blood pressure, but ephedrine did not completely prevent it either. Overall, while ephedrine helped delay low blood pressure, it didn't stop it from happening during anesthesia.
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Abstract
To determine if the preanesthetic administration of ephedrine would prevent anesthesia-induced hypotension in dogs and cats, 10 cats were anesthetized with acepromazine, butorphanol, ketamine, and isoflurane, and 8 dogs were anesthetized with acepromazine, morphine, propofol, and halothane. Cats received ephedrine or saline 10 minutes after premedication. Dogs received ephedrine or saline at the time of premedication. Systolic arterial blood pressure, respiratory rate, heart rate, end-tidal CO2, O2 saturation, cardiac rhythm, and rectal temperature were recorded.The systolic arterial pressure in cats receiving saline was significantly lower than baseline at 10 minutes after premedication, and systolic arterial pressure was < 80 mmHg for the duration of anesthesia. In cats receiving ephedrine, the systolic arterial pressure was significantly lower than baseline for the duration of anesthesia, but systolic arterial pressure was not < 80 mmHg until 25 min after induction. In dogs, systolic arterial pressure was significantly lower than baseline by 5 and 40 min after pre-medication in dogs receiving saline and ephedrine, respectively. There was no difference in heart rate, respiratory rate, end-tidal CO2, rectal temperature, O2 saturation, or cardiac rhythm among treatment groups. Prophylactic ephedrine delayed, but did not prevent, the onset of hypotension.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19412398/