Les effets du vieillissement sur la pharmacodynamie et la pharmacocinétique de la kétamine et de la xylazine chez le rat Sprague-Dawley
In laboratory animals, even if inhalation anesthetics are generally safer than injecting, their usefulness is often restrained when an experimental design does not allow it. For this reason, ketamine combinations are considered the option of choice for injecting anesthesia in rats. Aging brings degenerative changes in the structure and function of the organs, often affecting the pharmacokinetics of drugs. This project focuses on the evaluation of physiological, pharmacokinetic, biochemical and histological changes during a ketamine-­‐xylazine anesthetic combination in aging Sprague-­‐Dawley rats. Anesthesia with ketamine-­‐xylazine was induced in Sprague-­‐Dawley rats of different ages. To assess the effect of aging on the metabolism of both drugs, periodic blood samples for pharmacokinetic analysis and measurements of physiological, biochemical and histological parameters were performed. Aging have made some changes for example a decrease in oxygen saturation, a sharp drop in heart and respiratory rate, hypoalbuminemia and an increase in the duration of anesthesia. The pharmacokinetic parameters of ketamine and xylazine were greatly affected in older animals, causing a significant increase in the area Under the curve (AUC) and the half-­‐life time, and a decrease in clearance. In the light of these results, dosage of ketamine and xylazine must be adapted in aging rats to allow a short anesthesia and an awakening without complications.
Xylazine Sprague-Dawley rat Anesthesia Ketamine Xylazine Aging Pharmacokinetic