Effects of intraarticular ropivacaine and morphine on lipopolysaccharide-induced synovitis in horses.
Abstract: To compare the intraarticular (IA) analgesic effects of ropivacaine and morphine in horses with experimentally induced synovitis. Methods: Randomized, blinded cross-over design. Methods: Twelve healthy mixed breed horses between 8-15 years old. Methods: Synovitis was induced in the left radio-carpal joint with an injection of lipopolysaccharide (Escherichia coli 055:B5). Six hours later, the horses were treated with an IA injection of 40 mg of ropivacaine (ROPI), 40 mg of morphine (MOR), 20 mg of ropivacaine added to 20 mg of morphine in saline (RM) or 4 mL of saline (SAL), as control. Analgesia was measured subjectively using a numerical rating scale, a simple descriptive scale, pain upon maximal flexion of the carpus and by the range of motion exhibited by the affected joint. Data are reported as mean +/- SD and were analyzed using anova. Blood and synovial data were analyzed by split plots in time with units (treatments: SAL, ROPI, MOR and RM) and subunits (times: T0-24), in a completely randomized design with six replicates. Mean comparisons were made by Tukey's test; differences were considered significant at p < 0.05. Results: Ropivacaine had a clinical analgesic effect with a relative short duration ( approximately 2.5 to 3.5 hours). Morphine had a slower onset of action than ROPI, but a stronger analgesic effect of longer duration. The RM showed an earlier onset of action than MOR and had a strong analgesic effect for the 24-hour post-injection period. All treatments caused a significant decrease in total nucleated cells compared with the control, 24 hours after administration. Conclusions: Morphine alone or in combination with ropivacaine produced a strong analgesic effect of prolonged duration, which may offer pain relief for acute synovitis for at least 24 hours.
Publication Date: 2009-04-29 PubMed ID: 19397780DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-2995.2009.00452.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Randomized Controlled Trial
Summary
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This research focuses on comparing the pain-relieving effects of two drugs, ropivacaine and morphine, when injected into the joint space in horses with induced joint inflammation. The study found that injecting morphine, either alone or together with ropivacaine, had strong and enduring pain-relieving effects that could help manage the pain from acute joint inflammation for at least 24 hours.
Methodology
- The research used twelve healthy mixed breed horses aged 8-15 years. These horses were subjected to induced inflammation in the radio-carpal (wrist) joint through an injection of lipopolysaccharide; compound found in bacteria that can cause inflammation..
- After 6 hours had passed, the horses were given different treatments. These treatments were injections of either 40mg of ropivacaine, 40mg of morphine, a mix of 20mg of ropivacaine and 20mg of morphine, or a saline control injection.
- The degree of pain relief provided by each treatment group was then measured through several subjective scales and observational techniques, including monitoring the horses’ movement of the affected joint, and their reactions to having the joint manipulated.
- The researchers collected and analyzed blood and joint (synovial) fluid data over 24 hours for each treatment and compared means using the Tukey’s comparison test.
Results
- The study found that ropivacaine offered a short-lived pain-relieving effect of between 2.5 and 3.5 hours.
- Morphine, on the contrary, had a slower start compared to ropivacaine but provided stronger and longer-lasting pain relief.
- The combination of ropivacaine and morphine resulted in a faster onset of pain relief than morphine alone and provided consistent pain relief over the full 24-hour period after injection.
- It was also noted that all treatments greatly reduced the number of certain cells (total nucleated cells) compared to the saline control, 24 hours following administration.
Conclusions
- The study concluded that morphine, either used alone or in combination with ropivacaine, provided a more consistent, longer-lasting pain relief and could be beneficial in managing acute joint inflammation in horses over at least a 24-hour period.
Cite This Article
APA
Santos LC, de Moraes AN, Saito ME.
(2009).
Effects of intraarticular ropivacaine and morphine on lipopolysaccharide-induced synovitis in horses.
Vet Anaesth Analg, 36(3), 280-286.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-2995.2009.00452.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Pathology and Clinical Sciences, Santa Catarina State University, Lages, Brazil. ls522@cornell.edu
MeSH Terms
- Amides / administration & dosage
- Amides / pharmacology
- Analgesics / administration & dosage
- Analgesics / pharmacology
- Animals
- Cross-Over Studies
- Drug Therapy, Combination
- Female
- Horse Diseases / chemically induced
- Horse Diseases / drug therapy
- Horses
- Injections, Intra-Articular / veterinary
- Lipopolysaccharides / toxicity
- Male
- Morphine / administration & dosage
- Morphine / pharmacology
- Ropivacaine
- Synovitis / chemically induced
- Synovitis / drug therapy
- Synovitis / veterinary
Citations
This article has been cited 8 times.- Ask K, Andersen PH, Tamminen LM, Rhodin M, Hernlund E. Performance of four equine pain scales and their association to movement asymmetry in horses with induced orthopedic pain. Front Vet Sci 2022;9:938022.
- Zhang Q, Bai X, Wang R, Zhao H, Wang L, Liu J, Li M, Chen Z, Wang Z, Li L, Wang D. 4-octyl Itaconate inhibits lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced osteoarthritis via activating Nrf2 signalling pathway. J Cell Mol Med 2022 Mar;26(5):1515-1529.
- Mendez ME, Sebastian A, Murugesh DK, Hum NR, McCool JL, Hsia AW, Christiansen BA, Loots GG. LPS-Induced Inflammation Prior to Injury Exacerbates the Development of Post-Traumatic Osteoarthritis in Mice. J Bone Miner Res 2020 Nov;35(11):2229-2241.
- Di Salvo A, Chiaradia E, Della Rocca G, Giorgi M, Mancini F, Marenzoni ML, Conti MB, Nannarone S. Efficacy, chondrotoxicity and plasma concentrations of tramadol following intra-articular administration in horses undergoing arthroscopy: preliminary findings. Vet Q 2018 Dec;38(1):129-137.
- Rubio-Martínez LM, Rioja E, Castro Martins M, Wipawee S, Clegg P, Peffers MJ. Local anaesthetics or their combination with morphine and/or magnesium sulphate are toxic for equine chondrocytes and synoviocytes in vitro. BMC Vet Res 2017 Nov 7;13(1):318.
- Guedes AGP, Aristizabal F, Sole A, Adedeji A, Brosnan R, Knych H, Yang J, Hwang SH, Morisseau C, Hammock BD. Pharmacokinetics and antinociceptive effects of the soluble epoxide hydrolase inhibitor t-TUCB in horses with experimentally induced radiocarpal synovitis. J Vet Pharmacol Ther 2018 Apr;41(2):230-238.
- Freitas GC, Carregaro AB, Gehrcke MI, De La Côrte FD, Lara VM, Pozzobon R, Brass KE. Epidural analgesia with morphine or buprenorphine in ponies with lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced carpal synovitis. Can J Vet Res 2011 Apr;75(2):141-6.
- Koziy RV, Katselis GS, Yoshimura S, Simko E, Bracamonte JL. Temporal kinetics of serum amyloid A (SAA) concentration and identification of SAA isoforms in blood and synovial fluid of horses with experimentally induced septic arthritis, non-septic synovitis, and systemic inflammation. J Vet Diagn Invest 2025 Jan;37(1):42-54.
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