Cardiovascular assessment in horses sedated with xylazine or amitraz

Abstract

Cardiovascular effects due to intravenous (IV) xylazine (1.0mg/kg) or amitraz (0.1 or 0.4mg/kg) were evaluated in horses. Left ventricular function indexes, heart rate (HR), and cardiac output (CO) were measured by echocardiography. Second degree atrioventricular (AV) block was detected by electrocardiography. Invasive arterial blood pressure (AP) was also evaluated. All parameters were measured immediately before and during 60 minutes after drug injection. HR, CO, and second degree AV block were different between xylazine and amitraz-0.4mg/kg groups. Xylazine induced initial hypertension 10 minutes after injection, and hypotension was observed 30 minutes after amitraz-0.4mg/kg administration. Except for the second degree AV block which occurred only at five minutes, there was no change in the echocardiographic measurements after administration of amitraz-0.1mg/kg. Thus, amitraz-0.4mg/kg and xylazine (1.0mg/kg) induced similar cardiovascular side effects, but longlasting action of amitraz-0.4mg/kg in the cardiovascular system was observed.