Evaluation of a constant rate infusion of lidocaine for balanced anesthesia in dogs undergoing surgery

This study assessed the intraoperative analgesic effects of intravenous lidocaine administered by a constant rate infusion (CRI) in surgical canine patients. A prospective, blinded, randomized study was designed with 2 treatment groups: A (lidocaine) and B (placebo), involving 41 dogs. All patients were premedicated with acepromazine and buprenorphine, induced with propofol and midazolam; anesthesia was maintained with isoflurane in oxygen. Group A received 2 mg/kg IV lidocaine immediately after induction, followed within 5 min by a CRI at 50 μg/kg/min. Group B received an equivalent volume of saline instead of lidocaine. Changes in heart rate and blood pressure during maintenance were treated by increasing CRI. Fentanyl was used as a supplemental analgesic when intraoperative nociceptive response was not controlled with the maximum dose of lidocaine infusion. There was a significantly lower use of supplemental intraoperative analgesia in the lidocaine than in the placebo group. Group B dogs had almost twice as high a risk of intraoperative nociceptive response as group A dogs.