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Home / Equine Research Bank / J Vet Intern Med / Drug Residues after Intravenous Anesthesia and Intrathecal L...
Journal of veterinary internal medicine2016; 30(4); 1322-1326; doi: 10.1111/jvim.14372

Drug Residues after Intravenous Anesthesia and Intrathecal Lidocaine Hydrochloride Euthanasia in Horses.

Abstract: Intrathecal lidocaine hydrochloride under general anesthesia has been used as an alternative method of euthanasia in equids. Carnivore, scavenger, and even human consumption of horse meat from carcasses have been anecdotally reported in rural areas after this method of euthanasia. The presence of drug residues in horse meat has not been investigated. Objective: To investigate if drug residues are found in horse tissues and determine their concentrations. Methods: Of 11 horses requiring euthanasia for medical reasons. Methods: Prospective descriptive study. Horses were anesthetized with total IV dose of xylazine (mean, 2.5 mg/kg), midazolam (0.1 mg/kg), and ketamine hydrochloride (mean, 5.8 mg/kg). An atlanto-occipital cisterna centesis for the collection of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and administration of lidocaine hydrochloride (4 mg/kg) was performed. Blood samples for both serum and plasma, skeletal muscle (triceps brachii, gluteus medius), and CSF were collected for the determination of drug residues. Frozen skeletal muscle available from 5 additional horses that received standard dosages of drugs for short-term anesthesia (xylazine 1.1 mg/kg, midazolam 0.1 mg/kg, and ketamine 2.2 mg/kg) also were analyzed. Results: Drug residues were found in the tissues of all horses, but at extremely low concentrations. Conclusions: Euthanasia by administration of lidocaine intrathecally to horses under IV anesthesia poses a low risk of toxicity to carnivores and scavengers that might consume muscle tissue from a carcass in which this protocol has been used.
Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.
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Publication Date: 2016-06-30 PubMed ID: 27362367PubMed Central: PMC5108439DOI: 10.1111/jvim.14372Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The study is investigating whether drug residues are present in horse tissues after euthanasia administered with intrathecal lidocaine hydrochloride under general anesthesia and the quantities of these residues.

Objective and Methods

  • The objective of the research was to investigate the presence and concentration of drug residues in horse tissues after euthanasia.
  • A total of 11 horses that required euthanasia for medical reasons were used for this prospective descriptive study.
  • The horses were first anesthetized with a total IV dose of certain drugs (xylazine, midazolam, and ketamine hydrochloride).
  • Then a procedure called atlanto-occipital cisterna centesis was performed for the collection of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and administration of lidocaine hydrochloride.
  • Blood samples for both serum and plasma, skeletal muscle (from two different parts of the body), and CSF were collected for the determination of drug residues.
  • Frozen skeletal muscle tissues available from 5 additional horses that received standard dosages of the same drugs for short-term anesthesia were also analyzed.

Results

  • Drug residues were discovered in the tissues of all horses studied, regardless of the protocol used for euthanasia or anesthesia.
  • However, the concentrations of the residues found were extremely low.

Conclusions

  • The study concluded that euthanasia, performed by administering lidocaine intrathecally under IV anesthesia, presents a low risk of toxicity to carnivores and scavengers that might consume muscle tissue from the horse’s carcass where this procedure has been practiced.
  • This conclusion encompasses both the immediate intrathecal-lidocaine euthanasia and those cases where horses received the same drugs for short-term anesthesia.

Cite This Article

APA
Aleman M, Davis E, Knych H, Guedes A, Smith F, Madigan JE. (2016). Drug Residues after Intravenous Anesthesia and Intrathecal Lidocaine Hydrochloride Euthanasia in Horses. J Vet Intern Med, 30(4), 1322-1326. https://doi.org/10.1111/jvim.14372

Publication

Journal of veterinary internal medicine
ISSN: 1939-1676
NlmUniqueID: 8708660
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 30
Issue: 4
Pages: 1322-1326

Researcher Affiliations

Aleman, M
  • Departments of Medicine and Epidemiology, University of California, Davis, CA.
Davis, E
  • International Animal Welfare Training Institute, University of California, Davis, CA.
Knych, H
  • K. L. Maddy Equine Analytical Chemistry Laboratory, University of California, Davis, CA.
Guedes, A
  • Surgical and Radiological Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA.
Smith, F
  • William R. Pritchard Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, University of California, Davis, CA.
Madigan, J E
  • Departments of Medicine and Epidemiology, University of California, Davis, CA.

MeSH Terms

  • Anesthesia, Intravenous / veterinary
  • Anesthetics, Local / administration & dosage
  • Anesthetics, Local / chemistry
  • Anesthetics, Local / pharmacology
  • Animals
  • Cadaver
  • Drug Residues / analysis
  • Euthanasia, Animal / methods
  • Horses
  • Injections, Spinal
  • Lidocaine / administration & dosage
  • Lidocaine / chemistry
  • Lidocaine / pharmacology

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Citations

This article has been cited 1 times.
  1. Fritz SA, Kleinhenz MD, Ensley SM, Gorden PJ, Zhang Y, Coetzee JF, Apley MD. Determining the Persistence of Xylazine and Ketamine in Cattle Tissue Following a Simulated Rendering Process. Vet Sci 2025 Aug 7;12(8).
    doi: 10.3390/vetsci12080740pubmed: 40872690google scholar: lookup
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