Deut Tierarztl Woch
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Deut Tierarztl Woch · Oct 2001
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialClinical comparison of preanaesthetic intramuscular medetomidine and dexmedetomidine in domestic sheep.
Medetomidine and its active d-enantiomer, dexmedetomidine, are highly selective alpha-2 agonists with potent sedative, anaesthetic-sparing and analgesic effects. These properties make them an ideal pre-anaesthetic medication for noxious surgical procedures. However, sheep can develop adverse hypoxaemic effects after intravenous alpha-2 agonists. ⋯ The observed differences (heart rates, PaO2) between dexmedetomidine and medetomidine at the chosen dose relationship can be considered clinically not significant. At the chosen dose rates individual animals responded with a transient drop in blood oxygenation, therefore careful monitoring is required. In addition, in compromised sheep medetomidine and dexmedetomidine should be used carefully.