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Topic:Analgesia
Analgesia in horses involves the use of medications and techniques to alleviate pain caused by injury, surgery, or chronic conditions. Effective pain management is important for the welfare and recovery of equine patients, as unmanaged pain can lead to complications and prolonged healing. Common analgesic agents used in horses include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), opioids, and local anesthetics. These agents work through various mechanisms to reduce pain perception and improve comfort. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the pharmacology, application, and clinical outcomes of analgesic strategies in equine medicine.
Systemic d-phenylalanine and d-leucine for effective treatment of pain in the horse. This study showed that subcutaneous injection of a solution of D-amino acids produced effective analgesia in horses. It is postulated that systemic D-phenylalanine and D-leucine may become one of the safe, effective and nonaddictive drugs for acute and chronic pain treatment. These D-amino acids cause analgesia by presumably preserving brain endorphins. They may bind reversibly to enkephalinases and prevent enzymatic degradation of enkephalins.
Endotoxin-induced hemodynamic changes in ponies: effects of flunixin meglumine. A study was made of flunixin meglumine, an analgesic agent with antiinflammatory and antiprostaglandin activity, for the management of endotoxin-induced cardiovascular derangements. Three groups of 5 ponies each were used: controls--group 1; given endotoxin but not treated--group 2; and given endotoxin and treated with flunixin meglumine--group 3. Shock was induced in anesthetized ponies with IV injection of Escherichia coli endotoxin. Hemodynamic changes were monitored, and regional blood flow was determined at 4 different times, using microspheres labeled with 1 of 4 nuclides. There were ext...
beta-Endorphin: isolation, amino acid sequence and synthesis of the hormone from horse pituitary glands. Beta-endorphin has been isolated from equine pituitaries. Its amino acid sequence is identical to that of ovine, bovine and camel beta-endorphins except for substitution of the threonine residue at position 6 by serine. The equine beta-endorphin has also been synthesized by the solid-phase method. In comparison with the human hormone, equine beta-endorphin was shown to possess 3 times the receptor-binding activity in rat membrane preparations and 1.6 times the analgesic potency in the mouse tail-flick assay.
Pharmacology of narcotic analgesics in the horse: selective blockade of narcotic-induced locomotor activity. The locomotor responses of horses given morphine and fentanyl were blocked or lessened by administration of naloxone or acepromazine. Naloxone given at the dosage of 0.015 mg/kg completely blocked the locomotor activity induced in horses given fentanyl (0.020 mg/kg of body weight). The locomotor stimulation produced by morphine given at the dosage of 2.4 mg/kg was reduced by 75% of naloxone (0.020 mg/kg). Acepromazine partially blocked the locomotor responses to fentanyl and morphine. This blockade activity reached its peak about 30 minutes after acepromazine was given (IV) and lasted more tha...
The major metabolite of fentanyl in the horse. Fentanyl, a potent, synthetic narcotic analgesic, has reportedly been used to "dope" racehorses. Urine was collected from a horse dosed with 70 mg of [3H]fentanyl, and the primary metabolite, a water-soluble, amphoteric compound, was isolated by high-pressure liquid chromatography and identified by spectroscopic analysis. This metabolite was found to be N-[1-(2-phenethyl-4-piperidinyl)] malonanilinic acid.
Cardiopulmonary, behavioral, and pharmacokinetic effects of propoxyphene in horses. The acute behavioral cardiopulmonary and pharmacokinetic effects of propoxyphene hydrochloride were studied in seven adult horses. Each horse was given three different dosages of propoxyphene (0.5, 1.0, 2.2 mg/kg) IV. Fourteen days was allotted between each drug administration. The lower IV dosages of propoxyphene (0.5, 1.0 mg/kg) resulted in no changes in indices of cardiopulmonary function. Four horses demonstrated a transient period of muscle fasciculations when given 0.5 mg of propoxyphene/kg. Horses given 1.0 mg/kg demonstrated a brief period of euphoria, ataxia, and muscle fasciculations...
Hemodynamic and respiratory effects of xylazine-morphine sulfate in horses. The cardiopulmonary effects of two xylazine-morphine sulfate drug combinations (mixtures) given IV were evaluated in horses. In horses given xylazine (0.66 mg/kg of body weight) and morphine sulfate (0.12 mg/kv) IV (experiment 1), there were significant (P less than 0.05) decreases in heart rate, cardiac output, and respiratory rate. Central venous pressure was significantly (P less than 0.05) increased. Arterial and pulmonary arterial blood pressures increased significantly (P less than 0.05) but transiently. Arterial blood gas tensions (PaCO2 and PaO2) and pH remained unchanged. In the horse...
Objective tests of analgesic drugs in ponies. An equine model, subjected to three kinds of pain (superficial, deep, and visceral) was used to test effects of analgesic drugs. Two groups of ponies were used. In the first group of six ponies, six drugs (fentanyl, meperidine, methadone, oxymorphone, pentazocine, and xylazine) were given according to a Latin square experimental design, and tests were made at 30-minute intervals for 4 hours. Mean values (control) for the three kinds of pain were obtained before and after the tests and were compared with the mean values (drugs) obtained over 2- and 4-hour intervals (four and eight measurements ...
The influence of neuroleptanalgesia on the serum activity of muscle enzymes in ponies. The serum activities of creatine kinase (CPK), aldolase (ALD) and alpha-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBD) were determined in a group of Welsh Mountain ponies before and after a 30 minute period of neuroleptanalgesia induced by i.v. injection of Immobilon and terminated by i.v. injection of Revivon. There were slight but significant increases in the serum activities of CPK and HBD following neuroleptanalgesia, but no change in the serum activity of ALD. It is suggested that this form of neuroleptanalgesia may be associated, in ponies, with a degree of reversible myocardial hypoxic change, pos...
Effect of training on some metabolic changes associated with submaximal endurance exercise in the horse. The effects of prolonged cantering before and after a 10 week training programme were studied in 6 horses. Determinations were carried on on venous blood for packed cell volume, glucose, glycerol, free fatty acids, beta-hydroxybutyrate, 11-hydroxycorticosteroids, pH and pCO2. Exercise caused a slight increase in glucose, lactate and pH, a moderate rise in PCV, glycerol and free fatty acids, and a marked rise in 11-hydroxycorticosteroids. A decrease in venous pCO2 occurred and a slight but not significant decrease in beta-hydroxybutyrate. Training was found to cause no significant difference in...
Evaluation of xylazine and ketamine hydrochloride for anesthesia in horses. The cardiopulmonary effects resulting from the combination of xylazine and ketamine hydrochloride were evaluated in the adult horse. Xylazine (1.1 mg mg/kg) administered intravenously prior to or simultaneously with ketamine hydrochloride (2.2 mg/kg; intravenous) provided excellent analgesia and light anesthesia in all horses. Cardiac output, arterial blood pressure, pulmonary arterial pressure, central venous pressure, and pulmonary arterial wedge pressure remained within normal limits for the adult horse. Evidence of respiratory acidosis developed with time during the anesthetic period. Indu...
Electromyoenterography during normal gastro-intestinal activity, painful or non-painful colic and morphine analgesia, in the horse. The electrical potentials were recorded from the antrum, the duodenum, the ileum and the first part of the colon of ponies under (a) normal resting conditions, (b) during nonpainful colic and (c) after intravenous morphine administration. The normal pony, at rest, had five contractions of the antrum per minute. On the small intestine, the basal electrical activity decreased from the duodenum (14-15/min) to the ileum (10-11/min). The small bowel also had three types of motility: peristaltic waves, rhythmic segmentations and random contractions. On the colon, bursts of potentials indicating inte...
