A comparison of ketorolac with flunixin, butorphanol, and oxymorphone in controlling postoperative pain in dogs.

Ketorolac tromethamine, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory analgesic, was compared with flunixin and butorphanol for its analgesic efficacy and potential side effects after laparotomy or shoulder arthrotomy in dogs. Sixty-four dogs were randomly assigned to receive butorphanol 0.4 mg/kg body weight (BW) (n = 21), flunixin 1.0 mg/kg BW (n = 21), or ketorolac 0.5 mg/kg BW (n = 22), in a double blind fashion. The analgesic efficacy was rated from 1 to 4 (1 = inadequate, 4 = excellent) for each dog. The average scores after laparotomy were ketorolac, 3.4; flunixin, 2.7; and butorphanol, 1.6. After shoulder arthrotomy, the average scores were ketorolac, 3.5; flunixin, 3.0; and butorphanol, 1.4 (5/11 dogs). As butorphanol was unable to control pain after shoulder arthrotomy, oxymorphone, 0.05 mg/kg BW, replaced butorphanol in a subsequent group of dogs and had a score of 2.0 (6/11 dogs). Serum alanine aminotransferase and creatinine were significantly elevated above baseline at 24 hours postoperatively in dogs receiving flunixin. One dog in each group developed melena or hematochezia. One dog receiving ketorolac had histological evidence of gastric ulceration. We concluded that ketorolac is a good analgesic for postoperative pain in dogs.

Systolic and diastolic dysfunction of the left ventricle induced by dietary taurine deficiency in cats.

Isovolumic left ventricular (LV) preparations were used to assess myocardial failure associated with dietary taurine deficiency in cats. Adult female cats (n = 12) were fed a purified diet devoid of taurine for 6-8 mo. Six of the cats received 1,000 mg of crystalline taurine orally once daily. The remaining six cats were not provided taurine replacement. Compared with control preparations, hearts isolated from taurine-deficient cats generated significantly lower values for developed LV systolic pressure (107 +/- 6 vs. 66 +/- 15 mmHg; P less than 0.05), maximal rate of LV pressure rise (+dP/dtmax; 1,103 +/- 38 vs. 718 +/- 172 mmHg/s; P less than 0.05), and fall (-dP/dtmax; 930 +/- 46 vs. 587 +/- 129 mmHg/s; P less than 0.05). LV function curves generated by hearts from taurine-deficient cats were shifted downward and to the right of control curves, demonstrating inotropic depression. In addition, end-diastolic pressure-volume (compliance) relationships in hearts from taurine-deficient cats were shifted downward and to the right of controls in the direction of increased chamber compliance or distensibility. Ten millimolar taurine significantly improved inotropic indexes only in hearts from taurine-deficient cats but failed to affect diastolic compliance. Myocardial contractile dysfunction and LV chamber dilatation in hearts from taurine-deficient cats verify a causal association between dietary deficiency of this amino acid and dilated cardiomyopathy in this species.

Left ventricular changes resulting from chronic aortic regurgitation in dogs.

Chronic aortic regurgitation (AR) was induced by aortic valve perforation using catheterization techniques in 7 closed-chest puppies. Approximately 2 years after the creation of AR in these puppies, their growth was similar to that in littermate controls. A gradually progressive degree of left ventricular (LV) dilation and hypertrophy occurred as LV end-diastolic volume (average 116%) and mass (average 114%) increased in animals with AR compared with that in the littermate controls. The technique described to induce AR did not interfere with the normal growth and development of the animals, and permitted study of the functional characteristics of the resulting LV dilation and hypertrophy without added effects of thoracotomy and pericardiotomy.