Research Article
Assessment of Common Anaesthetic and Clinical Indices of
Multimodal Therapy of Propofol, Xylazine, and Ketamine in
Total Intravenous Anaesthesia in West African Dwarf Goat
Ukwueze Celestine Okwudili,
1
Eze Chinedu Athanasius,
2
and Udegbunam Rita Ijeoma
2
1
Department of Veterinary Surgery and Teriogenology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture,
PMB 7267, Umudike, Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria
2
Department of Veterinary Surgery and Radiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria
Correspondence should be addressed to Ukwueze Celestine Okwudili; ukwezecele@yahoo.com
Received 19 June 2014; Revised 15 September 2014; Accepted 22 September 2014; Published 19 October 2014
Academic Editor: William Van Bonn
Copyright © 2014 Ukwueze Celestine Okwudili et al. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons
Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is
properly cited.
Te assessment of anaesthetic and clinical indices of multimodal therapy of propofol, xylazine, and ketamine was done in West
African Dwarf (WAD) goat. Sixteen healthy male WAD goats were assigned into four treatment groups, namely, control (group
A) (ketamine 5 mg/kg + xylazine 0.05 mg/kg), group B (propofol 5 mg/kg + xylazine 0.05 mg/kg), group C (propofol 5 mg/kg +
ketamine 5 mg/kg), and group D (propofol 2.5 mg/kg + ketamine 2.5 mg/kg + xylazine 0.05 mg/kg). All drugs were administered
intravenously. Te multimodal therapy decreased signifcantly ( < 0.05) the heart rate in groups A, B, and D. Also respiratory rate
signifcantly ( < 0.05) decreased in groups A, B, and D but signifcantly ( < 0.05) increased at 20 min afer induction in group C.
However, temperature signifcantly ( < 0.05) decreased in groups A, B, and C. Te induction was good and smooth in groups B
and D. Surgical anaesthetic time was longer in groups B and D and shorter in group C. Te quality of recovery was good in groups
B and D. Side efects such as salivation and apnoea were observed in all groups. In conclusion, the multimodal therapy could be
used successfully. However, group D could be the best combination considering the parameters measured.
1. Introduction
Anaesthesia is an indispensible prerequisite for most sur-
gical interventions both in humans and in animals [1]. It
is supposed to provide reversible unconsciousness, amne-
sia/analgesia, muscle relaxation, and immobility with mini-
mal adverse efects, rapid and smooth recovery of protective
refex and psychomotor function [2, 3]. Tis can be possible
through the use of balanced anaesthetic technique as no sin-
gle drug provides all the components of general anaesthesia.
Te balanced anaesthetic technique involves combining two
or more anaesthetic drugs to achieve the targeted compo-
nents of general anaesthesia while minimizing the negative
efects of individual drugs on cardiopulmonary function [4].
Ketamine produces stable haemodynamics during anaes-
thesia as a result of its stimulatory efect on the sympathetic
nervous system, which counteracts the depressant efects of
other drugs used during anaesthesia [5]. It can be used for
anesthesia in sheep and goat without the fear of causing
convulsion [6]. Muscle relaxation is poor, but it can be
improved by sedatives such as diazepam or xylazine [7].
Ketamine and propofol multimodal therapy allows a reduc-
tion in the hypnotic dose of propofol and a decrease in the
cardiovascular depression induced by this drug [8].
Propofol (2,6-diisopropylphenol) is a phenolic com-
pound unrelated to any other general anesthetics. It is a non-
barbiturate, nondissociative, and noncumulative intravenous
anesthetic agent [7]. It has good quality anesthesia, rapid
onset, and short duration of action, with rapid recoveries
making the drug potentially useful in ruminants, in which
these features are particularly desirable [9]. It is used alone
and in combination with other drugs in dogs, cats, cattle,
horse, ponies, and goats [4, 5, 7, 10, 11]. Reports on the use
of propofol for induction and maintenance of anaesthesia
have indicated its suitability in goats [7, 9, 12]. Propofol has
been shown to be compatible with wide range of drugs used
Hindawi Publishing Corporation
Journal of Veterinary Medicine
Volume 2014, Article ID 962560, 6 pages
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/962560