Local anaesthesia in horses involves the administration of agents that temporarily block nerve conduction, resulting in a loss of sensation in a specific area of the body. This technique is employed in various veterinary procedures to facilitate pain management and allow for the performance of minor surgical interventions without the need for general anaesthesia. Common local anaesthetic agents used in equine medicine include lidocaine, mepivacaine, and bupivacaine. These agents are selected based on their duration of action and specific application requirements. The use of local anaesthesia can help minimize stress and recovery time for horses undergoing treatment. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the pharmacology, application methods, and clinical outcomes associated with local anaesthesia in equine practice.
Swanwick RA, Wilkinson JS.This paper evaluates the usefulness of abdominal paracentesis as a diagnostic aid in abdominal disease in the horse and in particular considers whether or not it can be effectively utilised as an indication for surgical intervention in cases of colic. The results are based upon peritoneal fluid samples collected from 20 normal horses and from 20 cases of colic and peritonitis. Peritoneal fluid was collected from standing horses by inserting a bovine teat cannula into the horses abdomen through the linea alba after desensitisation of the skin on the ventral midline with local anaesthetic. Usual...
Jeffcott LB.A description of some of the clinical features of low back pain in the horse has been given and a number of methods for assisting diagnosis considered. As well as a complete clinical examination both at rest and during exercise, a useful diagnostic aid in some chronic cases was the injection of local anaesthetic into the interspinous spaces. A laboratory examination, including haematological and biochemical profiles, was undertaken in all cases. The serum enzymes GOT and CPK were particularly valuable as an aid to diagnosis in atypical tying-up. A technique for radiography of the vertebral col...
Gough MR, Munroe GA, Mayhew G.This paper tests the hypothesis that the local analgesic agent mepivacaine diffuses between adjacent equine synovial structures in the hindlimb and with greater frequency than latex, gelatine dye or contrast media. We report the incidence of diffusion of mepivacaine between the tarsometatarsal, centrodistal and tarsocrural joints, and the 3 synovial compartments of the stifle in 33 fresh equine cadavers. The tarsometatarsal joint and one synovial compartment of the stifle in the left limb and the centrodistal joint and a different synovial compartment of the stifle in the right limbs were inje...
Estrada RJ, Alvarado GJ, Vargas A, Vargas J, Vargas D, Chacón R, Razquin P, Vindas R.To determine the proximal diffusion distance of radiopaque contrast medium and mepivacaine/methylene blue solution and incidence of inadvertent intrasynovial and intravascular injections of modified sesamoid nerve block (MASB) when compared with traditional plantar nerve analgesia techniques of the equine distal hind limb. Methods: Ex vivo model: 18 hind limbs; and in vivo model: 5 horses in a crossover study. Methods: In the ex vivo model, a mepivacaine/methylene blue solution was used to compare the diffusion distance between MASB, basisesamoid block (BSB), and traditional low plantar block ...
Cerasoli I, Cornillie P, Gasthuys F, Gielen I, Schauvliege S.To investigate the anatomy of the ear innervation in horses and develop a new approach for the block of the internal and external pinna and acoustic meatus. Methods: Prospective, descriptive, cadaveric study. Methods: A total of 25 heads and necks from horse cadavers. Methods: Phase I: anatomical dissection and dye deposition on 19 heads. With the head positioned in lateral recumbency, 10 mL methylene blue (1:1 sterile water) for the internal auricular and 2 mL for the great auricular nerve block were injected in 21 ears (seven left, 10 right and two bilaterally). The anatomy of all the ears (...
Rubio-Martínez LM, Rioja E, Castro Martins M, Wipawee S, Clegg P, Peffers MJ.Chondrotoxic effects of local anaesthetics are well reported in humans and some animal species but knowledge on their toxic effects on synoviocytes or equine chondrocytes or the effects on cellular production of inflammatory cytokines is limited. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the in vitro effects of local anaesthetics, morphine, magnesium sulphate (MgSO4) or their combinations on cell viability and pro-inflammatory cytokine gene expression of equine synoviocytes and chondrocytes. Equine synoviocytes and cartilage explants harvested from normal joints in a co-culture system were exp...
