Effects of Saffan administered intravenously in the horse.

The article reports on the effects of Saffan, an intravenously administered anaesthetic, on horses. The study found that while Saffan could induce and maintain anaesthesia in horses, it had numerous drawbacks, such as inducing excitement, poor muscle relaxation and discomfort during recovery.

Methodology

• The researchers administered Saffan intravenously to 11 horses and ponies for a total of 41 times, exploring its potential use in clinical equine anaesthesia.
• The optimal dose for induction was determined to be 1-90 mg per kg. This dose was divided into two parts: the first half given in five seconds and the second half containing 0.1 mg per kg of suxamethonium chloride, in the subsequent 10 seconds.

Results

• The study found that the administration of Saffan resulted in the horses experiencing visible signs of excitement for up to 30 seconds after succumbing to the effects of the anaesthetic.
• With the optimal dose, the induced anaesthesia lasted for five to eight minutes, which may be insufficient for certain medical procedures.
• While under the effects of Saffan, the horses’ muscle relaxation was observed to be poor, which might limit this anaesthetic’s utility in surgical procedures where muscle relaxation is crucial.

Recovery and Maintenance

• The recovery phase was marked by tactile and audible hyperaesthesia, indicating that the horses experienced increased sensitivity to touch and sound.
• Slight stimulation resulted in twitching and violent kicking movements, lasting up to 15 minutes, suggesting discomfort during the recovery phase.
• The study found that the use of halothane was satisfactory to maintain the anaesthetic state in the horses. The recovery from this regime was uneventful, which was in stark contrast to the recovery while using Saffan.
• The researchers also found that anaesthesia could be maintained solely using Saffan.

Conclusions

• The researchers concluded that Saffan does not offer any advantages over other anaesthetic agents currently used in equine practice given the numerous disadvantages observed. These include the onset of excitement, weakness in muscle relaxation, and post-anaesthetic discomfort.