Clinical effects of midazolam or lidocaine co-induction with a propofol target-controlled infusion (TCI) in dogs.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the propofol requirement, cardiovascular and respiratory variables using midazolam or lidocaine with a propofol target-controlled infusion (PTCI) for induction of anaesthesia in healthy dogs. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, randomized, controlled blinded clinical trial. ANIMALS: Sixty client-owned dogs [American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) I-II] undergoing surgical procedures. METHODS: Thirty minutes after premedication with acepromazine (0.03 mg kg(-1) ) and morphine (0.2 mg kg(-1) ), PTCI was started and maintained at a plasma target concentration of 1 µg mL(-1) . Three minutes later, dogs (n = 20 per group) received either 5 mL 0.9% sodium chloride (SG), 2 mg kg(-1) of lidocaine (LG) or 0.2 mg kg(-1) of midazolam (MG) intravenously (IV) as a co-induction agent. Two minutes later, suitability for endotracheal intubation was assessed. If intubation was not possible, the propofol target was increased by 0.5 µg mL(-1) every 60 seconds until it was successfully achieved. Heart rate (HR), respiratory rate (fR ), and oscillometric systolic arterial pressure (SAP), mean arterial pressure (MAP) and diastolic arterial pressure (DAP) were recorded immediately prior to commencing PTCI (B0), prior to intubation (BI), immediately after (T0), and at 3 (T3) and 5 (T5) minutes post-intubation. End-tidal partial pressures of carbon dioxide (PE(') CO2 ) were recorded at T0, T3 and T5. The occurrence of excitement at any time point was noted. RESULTS: The median (range) propofol target concentration for endotracheal intubation was significantly lower in MG, 1.5 (1.0-4.0) µg mL(-1) compared with LG, 2.5 (1.5-4.5) µg mL(-1) or SG, 3.0 (2.0-5.0) µg mL(-1) . Heart rate, MAP, fR and PE(') CO2 were similar in the three groups at all time points. No excitement was reported in any dog. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Midazolam, but not lidocaine, provided a significant reduction in PTCI requirement for induction of anaesthesia thereby allowing successful intubation. However, cardiovascular and respiratory effects were not different between the groups.

The Short Form of the Glasgow Composite Measure Pain Scale in Post-operative Analgesia Studies in Dogs: A Scoping Review.

The measurement and treatment of acute pain in animals is essential from a welfare perspective. Valid pain-related outcome measures are also crucial for ensuring reliable and translatable findings in veterinary clinical trials. The short form of the Glasgow Composite Measure Pain Scale (CMPS-SF) is a multi-item behavioral pain assessment tool, developed and validated using a psychometric approach, to measure acute pain in the dog. Here we conduct a scoping review to identify prospective research studies that have used the CMPS-SF. We aim to describe the contexts in which it has been used, verify the correct use of the scale, and examine whether these studies are well-designed and adequately powered. We identify 114 eligible studies, indicating widespread use of the scale. We also document a limited number of modifications to the scale and intervention level, which would alter its validity. A variety of methods, with no consensus, were used to analyse data derived from the scale. However, we also find many deficiencies in reporting of experimental design in terms of the observers used, the underlying hypothesis of the research, the statement of primary outcome, and the use of a priori sample size calculations. These deficiencies may predispose to both type I and type II statistical errors in the small animal pain literature. We recommend more robust use of the scale and derived data to ensure success of future studies using the tool ensuring reliable and translatable outcomes.

Development, initial validation and reliability testing of a web-based, generic feline health-related quality-of-life instrument.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to develop a valid, reliable, web-based generic feline health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) questionnaire instrument to measure the affective impact of chronic disease. METHODS: A large initial item pool, obtained through interviews with cat owners, was reduced using predetermined criteria, survey scores for relevance and clarity, and the ability of individual items to discriminate between healthy and sick cats when owners completed a prototype questionnaire. Using these data, factor analysis was used to derive a scoring algorithm and provide evidence for factorial validity. Validity was demonstrated further in a field trial using a 'known groups' approach (sick vs healthy cats will have a different HRQoL profile, and the HRQoL profile of cats will deteriorate as comorbidities increase). Test-retest reliability was assessed using intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs). RESULTS: In total, 165 items were reduced to 20 and, on the basis of a factor analysis that explained 72.3% of the variation in scores input by 71 owners of 30 healthy and 41 sick cats using the prototype, these were allocated to three domains (vitality, comfort and emotional wellbeing [EWB]) with a scoring algorithm derived using item loadings. Subsequently, the owners of 36 healthy and 58 sick cats completed one or two (n = 48) assessments. Median scores (healthy vs sick) for all domains were significantly different ( P <0.001), 78% of cats were correctly classified as healthy or sick and for comorbidities the correlation coefficients were moderate (vitality 0.64; comfort 0.63; EWB 0.50). Test-retest reliability was good (ICC vitality 0.635; comfort 0.716; EWB 0.853). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: This study provides initial evidence for the validity and reliability of a novel HRQoL instrument to aid the assessment and management of chronic diseases of cats.