Comparison of morphine and carprofen administered alone or in combination for analgesia in dogs undergoing ovariohysterectomy

Abstract

In this study the analgesic efficacy of the pure agonistic opioid morphine and the cyclo-oxygenase type-2-selective carprofen were compared since there is no previous specific comparative study for these two common analgesics. Forty-five bitches undergoing elective ovariohysterectomy were randomly assigned to one of three groups; receiving morphine 0.4 mg/kg bodyweight pre-operatively and 0.2 mg/kg every 4-6 hours thereafter (Morphine group), receiving a once-off carprofen 4 mg/kg injection (Carprofen group) or receiving both morphine and carprofen (MorphCarp group). The dogs were premedicated with acepromazine 0.01 mg/kg and induced with either thiopentone 5-10 mg/kg or propofol 4-6 mg/kg. General anaesthesia was maintained with halothane in oxygen. The degree of pain was assessed over a 24-hour period under blinded conditions using a pain scale modified from the University of Melbourne pain scale and the Glasgow composite pain tool. Physiological parameters such as respiratory rate, pulse rate and body temperature were also assessed over the same time period. There was no significant difference in pain-scores and thus analgesia offered by the three analgesia protocols at any assessment point across the three groups, but there were differences within groups across time points. Baseline total pain-scores were lower than scores at all post-operative points within all three groups. Both morphine and carprofen provided good analgesia without any obvious adverse effects. This study indicates that at the dosages indicated above, carprofen administered on its own produces analgesia equal to that produced by morphine and that the two drugs administered together do not produce better analgesia than either drug administered on its own.

Early analgesia after periodontal treatment in dogs: a comparison of three analgesic protocols

“…This variance could have been caused by the markedly higher dose of morphine (2.5, 5 and 10 mg/kg subcutaneously) used by Lochem-Claus et al (2005). Dzikiti et al (2006) compared carprofen-and morphine-induced analgesia in dogs undergoing ovariohysterectomy. The dosage of both morphine and carprofen was similar to the one used in our study, but they did not detect any significant differences in post-operative analgesic effects between the drugs.…”

“…In small animal practice the most widely used drugs for pain management are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), opioids or local anaesthetics (Dzikiti et al 2006). Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs produce analgesia by inhibiting the cyclooxygenase-2 enzyme which is released at sites of tissue damage along inflammatory processes (Haas 2002).…”

Eletroacupuntura na analgesia trans e pós-operatória de cadelas submetidas à ovariosalpingohisterectomia

“…De acordo com White et al (2004), a estimulação por eletroacupuntura é comprovadamente eficaz no alívio da dor somática e visceral em humanos e animais; resultado semelhante está relacionado à morfina, que foi eficiente no controle da dor pós-operatória (Dzikiti et al, 2006). Na avaliação pós-operatória, os escores de dor e o requerimento analgésico permitem afirmar que o grupo GEB apresentou analgesia pós-operatória mais eficiente que os demais, pois um menor número de animais necessitou de analgesia adicional e dentre os animais tratados apenas um animal recebeu mais de uma administração de morfina (Fig.…”

Perioperative use of non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in cats and dogs

“…Conversely some studies do not report an analgesic benefit of adding in an opioid to the analgesic regimen for neutering over a NSAID alone (Dzikiti and others 2006, Shih and others 2008, Staffieri and others 2013), but given current knowledge about pain pathophysiology and how to optimise analgesia techniques unimodal techniques can no longer be considered best practice in veterinary medicine.…”