Analgesic And Cardio-Pulmonary Effects Induced By Lumbosacral Epidural Injection Of Detomidine In Goats

Abstract

The present study was carried out in order to evaluate analgesia, heart and respiration rates and rectal temperature values after lumbosacral epidural injection of three doses (20, 40 and 80 Kg/kg) of detomidine in Small East African goats. Twelve clinically healthy, adult, goats of both sexes whose weight ranged from 13 to 22 (mean ± SD; 16.5 ± 2.6) kg were used. Six out of the twelve goats were randomly assigned separately to each treatment group and at least one-week interval was left between subsequent injections. Heart and respiration rates and rectal temperature values were determined at time 0 (pre-injection) and at 5, 10, 15, 20, and 30 minutes, thereafter at 15 minutes intervals up to 180 minutes after injection. Analgesia was determined after cardio-pulmonary measurements in unrestrained animal before administration of analgesics and thereafter at 5, 10, 15, 30 60, 120 and 180 minutes. All three doses induced adequate analgesia of the flank and perineum within 5 minutes, and persisted for the entire 180 minutes of the observation period. No significant differences were found between the analgesic effects of the three tested doses of detomidine. All doses induced significant drop of the mean respiration rate (RR) within 5 to 10 minutes. The RR depression effect persisted for the entire 180 minutes of the observation period. Significant drop of the mean heart rate (HR) was observed only for the two lower doses of 20 and 40 Kg/kg and persisted for 120 and 90 minutes respectively. All three doses induced a considerable rise in rectal temperature (RT) values that was followed by a gradual fall to normal. It was concluded that a two to four fold increase in the dose of detomidine administered through the lumbosacral epidural space does not increase the level and duration of the flank and perineal analgesia in Small East African goats. Tanzania Veterinary Journal Vol. 24 (2) 2007: pp. 102-111