Evaluation of the intraoperative analgesic effects of perioperative electroacupuncture: a randomised, blinded clinical trial in dogs.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effect of perioperative electroacupuncture (EA) on intraoperative analgesic requirements in dogs undergoing tibial tuberosity advancement (TTA) surgery.

STUDY

DESIGN

Prospective, randomised, blinded, controlled clinical study.

ANIMALS: A group of 29 client-owned dogs diagnosed with cranial cruciate ligament rupture that underwent TTA surgery.

METHODS

Dogs were treated with EA at predefined acupuncture points (LI-4, ST-36, LIV-3, SP-6 and GB-34) perioperatively as additional analgesia (group EA, n = 14) or were allocated to the control group (group C, n = 15). All dogs were anaesthetised with a standardised protocol including methadone, dexmedetomidine, propofol and ketamine. The intraoperative delivery of sevoflurane and fentanyl was guided in response to signs of nociception by a purpose-designed flowchart, by the same anaesthetist who was blinded to treatment group. A Wilcoxon rank sum test was applied for the fentanyl consumption analysis. Heart rate, mean arterial blood pressure and end-tidal sevoflurane were descriptively analysed between groups for specific time points. A p value < 0.05 was considered significant.

RESULTS

The EA group needed significantly less fentanyl with 0.7 (0-2.7) μg kg-1 hour-1 administered versus 2.0 (1.2-5.5) μg kg-1 hour-1 in group C (p = 0.031). Fifty percent of the EA group was not administered a fentanyl bolus, whereas all dogs in group C required at least one bolus.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Perioperative EA reduced mean fentanyl consumption by more than 60% in dogs undergoing TTA surgery.