Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Itching after spinal morphine in cats eased by low-dose propofol
By Gent, Thomas et al.·Published in Veterinary anaesthesia and analgesia·2013·Equine Department·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Neuraxial morphine induced pruritus in two cats and treatment with sub anaesthetic doses of propofol.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
Two cats undergoing orthopedic surgery developed intense itching after receiving morphine as part of their anesthesia. The first cat was treated with a sedative that didn’t relieve the itching, but a higher dose of the same sedative did stop the itching while also causing sedation. Instead, low doses of propofol, a common anesthetic, effectively relieved the itching without causing sedation. The second cat was treated similarly, and both cats had no further itching and were sent home after recovery.
People also search for: cat itching after surgery · morphine side effects in cats · propofol for cat itching treatment
Abstract
HISTORY: Two cats were presented for orthopaedic surgery. PHYSICAL EXAMINATION: With the exception of the orthopaedic injuries found, clinical examination showed no abnormality. MANAGEMENT: As part of anaesthetic management, one cat received intrathecal morphine, the other epidural morphine. Following recovery, intense grooming was observed. After ensuring adequate analgesia this behaviour was interpreted as pruritus. In the first cat, pruritus was initially managed with medetomidine constant rate infusion (CRI) at 1 and 1.5 μg kg(-1)  hour(-1) . The lower dose produced sedation and no relief from pruritus, the higher dose ablated pruritus but induced sedation. Two propofol (lipid emulsion formulation) boli of 0.1 mg kg(-1) ablated pruritus without causing sedation. The second cat was successfully treated with four boli of 0.1 mg kg(-1) propofol over 20 minutes. FOLLOW-UP: Following treatment with propofol, pruritus did not recur in either cat and both were discharged from the hospital. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first clinical report of morphine-induced pruritus in cats and management with low-dose propofol. These cases suggest an antipruritic mechanism for lipid-formulation propofol.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23577590/