Assessment of the sedative effects of buprenorphine administered with 20 microg/kg detomidine in horses

The aim of this randomised, observer-blinded, crossover study was to compare the effects of four treatments, administered intravenously to six horses: saline and saline; 10 μg/kg detomidine and 7.5 μg/kg buprenorphine; 20 μg/kg detomidine and 7.5 μg/kg buprenorphine; and 20 μg/kg detomidine and 10 μg/kg buprenorphine. Sedation was subjectively assessed and recorded on a visual analogue scale. Peak sedation and duration of sedation were investigated using a univariate general linear model with post-hoc Tukey tests (P<0.05). Increasing the dose of detomidine from 10 to 20 μg/kg increased the degree of sedation when administered with the same dose of buprenorphine (7.5 μg/kg). When administered with 20 μg/kg detomidine, increasing the dose of buprenorphine from 7.5 to 10 μg/kg did not influence the degree of sedation achieved.