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Electrocardiographic changes in rats undergoing thoracic surgery under combined parenteral anesthesia

Lab Animal volume 37, pages 469–474 (2008)Cite this article

Abstract

To compare two protocols of combined parenteral general anesthesia, the authors analyzed electrocardiographic changes in anesthetized rats undergoing left pneumonectomy. One group of rats was anesthetized with a combination of medetomidine and ketamine (group 1, n = 10), and the other was injected with diazepam and ketamine (group 2, n = 10). Investigators obtained two electrocardiograms from each rat, one before surgery (5 min after anesthesia) and one after surgery (60 min after anesthesia). Anesthetic induction was quick for all rats, though four rats in group 2 died before surgery. Mean cardiac frequency and R-wave amplitude were significantly lower in rats in group 1 than in rats in group 2. Rats in group 1 received injections of atipamezole about 60 min after surgery, which reversed the effects of medetomidine; these rats regained voluntary respiratory movement more quickly than did rats in group 2. Two additional rats in group 2 died during postsurgical recovery. These results suggest that for thoracic surgery in rats, medetomidine-ketamine is an appropriate anesthetic combination, may be safer than diazepam-ketamine and yields a shorter recovery time.

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Figure 1
Figure 2: Electrocardiographic tracings in derivation II of a rat from group 2.
Figure 3: Electrocardiographic tracings in derivation II of a rat from group 2.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a grant of The Canary Island Foundation for Research and Health (FUNCIS) and the Canary Island Institute for Cancer Research (ICIC). We thank Mr. Heriberto Grosso, technician at the bio-lab of the Research Unit at Hospital Universitario de Gran Canaria, Dr. Negrín, and Mr. Ramón Saavedra and Mr. Juan Ramírez Verona of the Illustration and Iconography Service at the same hospital for their technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Unit, Hospital Universitario de Gran Canaria, Dr. Negrín, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain

    Jose Luis Martín Barrasa,  Norberto Santana Rodríguez,  Jose Carlos Rodríguez-Pérez,  Araceli Caballero Hidalgo,  Pedro Llontop Santisteban &  Miguel Ponce González

  2. Thoracic Surgery and Non-Heart-Beating Donor Lung Transplantation Unit, Hospital Universitario Clínico San Carlos, Madrid, Spain

    Antonio Torres García

  3. Veterinary Hospital, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Toluca, Mexico

    Jose Antonio Ibancovichi Camarillo &  Marcos Barbosa Mireles

  4. Canary Island Institute for Cancer Research, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain

    Bonifacio Díaz Chico

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Correspondence to Jose Luis Martín Barrasa.

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Barrasa, J., Rodríguez, N., Rodríguez-Pérez, J. et al. Electrocardiographic changes in rats undergoing thoracic surgery under combined parenteral anesthesia. Lab Anim 37, 469–474 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban1008-469

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