Abstract
The combination of tiletamine and zolazepam is an important dissociative anesthetic-tranquilizer. However, little is known about the effects of this combination on the heart and respiration in rats. Adult, male rats anesthetized with tiletamine-zolazepam alone or tiletamine-zolazepam combined with xylazine or butorphanol were evaluated for changes in heart rate, mean arterial blood pressure, arterial blood pH, and blood gases during a 75-min period of anesthesia. Rats anesthetized with tiletamine-zolazepam had increased mean arterial blood pressure and less respiratory depression than did rats anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital. Tiletamine-zolazepam combined with xylazine at either dose produced bradycardia and a marked hypotension that persisted throughout the 75-min period. This combination produced respiratory depression comparable to tiletamine-zolazepam alone. The addition of butorphanol to tiletamine-zolazepam caused a transient hypotension and bradycardia. Tiletamine-zolazepam plus butorphanol produced a mild to severe respiratory depression that was dose and time dependent. These results demonstrate that: a) Tiletamine-zolazepam is cardiostimulatory, a property consistent with the known cardiovascular effects of other dissociative anesthetics; b) xylaxine plus tiletamine-zolazepam is a potent cardiovascular depressant combination; and c) tiletamine-zolazepam plus butorphanol at specific doses is an anesthetic-analgesic combination with minimal effects on cardiovascular and respiratory function.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1-8 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior |
Volume | 44 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jan 1993 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Biochemistry
- Toxicology
- Pharmacology
- Clinical Biochemistry
- Biological Psychiatry
- Behavioral Neuroscience