Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Seizures after atracurium in ventilated juvenile dogs
By Donaldson, Rebekah E et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary emergency and critical care (San Antonio, Tex. : 2001)·2020·Department of Clinical Science and Services, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Seizure activity following atracurium continuous rate infusion in three mechanically ventilated juvenile dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Three young dogs, aged 2 to 3 months, were put on a ventilator due to breathing difficulties and received a medication called atracurium during their treatment. After they were taken off the ventilator, all three dogs had seizures within the first day, but they were treated with medications to control the seizures. Fortunately, none of the dogs had any seizures after the first 48 hours post-ventilation. While atracurium helped them recover, it’s important for veterinarians to monitor for potential seizure activity when using this medication for a longer time.
People also search for: puppy seizures after anesthesia · dog breathing problems treatment · atracurium side effects in dogs
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To describe patient recovery in dogs that had undergone mechanical ventilation (MV) and received atracurium as a continuous rate infusion (CRI). CASE SERIES SUMMARY: Three dogs were treated with atracurium CRI while mechanically ventilated and were successfully weaned. All were pediatric patients (2-3 months old) ventilated due to respiratory fatigue and hypoxemia. All dogs experienced seizure activity in the initial 24 h following extubation and were treated with various anticonvulsant protocols; no patients experienced documented seizures after 48 h of discontinuation from MV. NEW OR UNIQUE INFORMATION PROVIDED: All three successfully weaned dogs that had received an atracurium CRI experienced new onset seizures in their recovery from MV. Atracurium use in long-term MV has not been described previously, and seizures in dogs following atracurium administration has not been described in the clinical setting. Although causation cannot be proven in this case series, atracurium use should be carefully considered and be monitored appropriately when used for a prolonged duration.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32780507/