Australian veterinary journal
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To assess the effects of the duration of anaesthesia, position of recumbency, mode of ventilation, anaesthetic drug protocol, patient age and type of surgical procedure on the usefulness of capnometry as a measure of the partial pressure of arterial carbon dioxide (P(a)co(2)) during general anaesthesia in horses. ⋯ P(a)co(2)- ETco(2) in anaesthetised horses can be large, making ETco(2) unreliable as a predictor of P(a)co(2) and for assessment of pulmonary ventilation. For anaesthesia lasting less than 60 min at least one blood gas analysis of an arterial blood sample is required to assess P(a)co(2)- ETco(2). Arterial blood gas analysis should be repeated after 60 min of general anaesthesia.