A clinical comparison of AH8165 and pancuronium as muscle relaxants in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

The non-depolarizing muscle relaxant AH8165 has been compared at two doses (0.5 and 1.0 mg/kg) with pancuronium (0.1 mg/kg) during induction of anaesthesia for patients having major cardiac surgery. After barbiturate-opiate premedication and thiopentone induction, administration of pancuronium was followed by no significant alteration in heart rate or arterial pressure. Both doses of AH8165 werr followed by significant tachycardia, and the higher dose by arterial hypotension. The lower dose of AH8165 was unsatisfactory for tracheal intubation, but the AH8165 1 mg/kg gave intubating conditions similar to those with pancuronium 0.1 mg/kg.