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British Journal of Anaesthesia, 1995, Vol. 74, No. 4 455-457
© 1995 The Board of Management and Trustees of the British Journal of Anaesthesia

other

Dexmedetomidine does not modify the neuromuscular blocking action of vecuronium in the anaesthetized rat{dagger}

M. B. WEINGER, MD*, B. L. PARTRIDGE, MD, DPHIL and A. F. HENRY, MD

Department of Anesthesiology, University of California San Diego School of Medicine and the Anesthesia Research Service of the San Diego Veterans Affairs Medical Center La Jolla, California 92093, USA

*Address for correspondence: VA Medical Center (125), 3350 La Jolla Village Drive, San Diego, CA 92161, USA

Dexmedetomidine is a new alpha adrenergic agonist anaesthetic adjuvant. In animal studies, dexmedetomidine produced muscle flaccidity and prevented opioid-induced muscle rigidity, appar ently via a central mechanism. The effect of dexmedetomidine on the neuromuscular junction or on non-depolarizing neuromuscular block during anaesthesia has not been reported. We have studied in the anaesthesized rat, the effects of dexmedetomidine on vecuronium-induced twitch depression. Wistar rats (n = 35) were anaesthetized and their lungs ventilated to maintain normocapnia. An infusion of vecuronium of 2.3 (SEM 0.1) µg kg min–1 produced a stable twitch height (T1) depression of the tibial nerve of 53 (2)% of control in all groups. Rats were allocated randomly to receive either saline or dexmedetomidine 10, 30 or 1 00 µg kg–1 i.v. and T1 height was measured continuously for 60 min. Dexmedetomidine did not significantly affect T1 height during the first 30 min of infusion. At later times there were minor differences between groups. With cessation of the infusion of vecu ronium, T1 height recovered rapidly to normal in all groups. These data suggest that the neuromuscular blocking properties of dexmedetomidine are unlikely to be produced by action at the neuromuscular junction.

{dagger} Presented in part at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, San Francisco, CA, October 1991.


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