Marsh rice rats (Oryzomys palustris) are a well-established animal model for periodontitis. Rice rats have a marked susceptibility to a spontaneous form of generalized periodontitis that closely resembles the human disease, 1,3,20,22,23,36,47,48 and more recently, we described a distinctive, localized form of periodontitis in this species, which we defined as food impaction-induced localized periodontitis. 38 We used rice rats with both forms of periodontitis to develop 2 novel models of medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw, 2,39 a rare but serious side effect of potent antiresorptive medications, such as bisphosphonates and denosumab, which are commonly prescribed for management of bone malignancy or osteoporosis. 33,45,46 Medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw occurs primarily in patients that receive antiresorptive agents in combination with recent oral trauma (for example, tooth extraction) or preexisting or coexisting inflammatory oral disease (for example, established periodontitis, dental disease). 33,45,46 The potential benefits of rice rats as models in dental and periodontal research suggests that interventions in the oral cavity that require general anesthesia are imminent. Isoflurane, ketamine-dexmedetomidine, ketamine-xylazine, and ketamine-midazolam are well-established anesthetic modalities that are routinely used in conventional laboratory roden ts.

Maximizing animal wellbeing by minimizing drug-related side effects is a key consideration when choosing pharmaceutical agents for chemical restraint in nonhuman primates. One drug combination that may promote this ideology is butorphanol (27.3 mg/mL), azaperone (9.1 mg/mL), and medetomidine (10.9 mg/mL; BAM). Based on results from a pilot study, 2 doses of BAM (16 and 24 µL/kg IM) were compared in healthy, 3-y-old rhesus macaques. Physiologic parameters and anesthetic quality were assessed and recorded every 5 min. Experimental endpoints were established for hypoxemia (85% or less peripheral oxygen saturation with oxygen supplementation), pulse rate (80 bpm or less for 2 consecutive readings), mean arterial pressure (MAP; 50 mm Hg or less), and hypothermia (97 °F or less); if any endpoint was achieved, medetomidine was reversed by using atipamezole (0.22 mg/kg IM). Both BAM doses resulted in immobilization of all animals with no clinically significant differences between groups. All animals initially exhibited hypoxemia that resolved with oxygen supplementation. Regardless of dose, most macaques (71%) reached established experimental endpoints for bradycardia (62 to 80 bpm) or hypotension (44 to 50 mm Hg MAP). Given the results of this study, our recommendation regarding the use of 16-or 24-µL/kg BAM for immobilizing rhesus macaques is dependent on caution regarding cardiopulmonary parameters and the provision of supplemental oxygen.

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