Evaluation of epidural anesthesia with lidocain compared to buprenorphine and the combination of lidocaine - buprenorphine in dogs

Abstract

The aim of our study is the comparative evaluation of epidural anesthesia by determining the antinociceptive efficacy and the modification of cardiorespiratory variables, in dogs in which a local anesthetic (lidocaine) and an opioid analgesic (buprenorphine) were injected into the epidural space separately and in combination. The solutions were administered in the epidural space to the dog as follows: lidocaine 2% (2.5 mg / kg) and buprenorphine (concentration to be added) (1.5 mcg/kg), respectively lidocaine 2% (5 mg/kc) or buprenorphine 0.3 mg/ml (3 mcg/kc). Lidocaine had excellent penetrability, rapidly producing onset (1.7 ± 0.30 min.) and onset of surgical anesthesia. However, it did not induce long-lasting sensory and motor nerve block and no satisfactory analgesia (6.0 ± 0.1.). Buprenorphine had a slow onset, but with a long-lasting analgesic effect (108.0 ± 41.6 min.). Epidural administration of opioids provides additional intra- and postoperative analgesia, in which case buprenorphine may be the drug of choice in laborious surgical procedures.