Onset and duration of action of escalating doses of atracurium in anesthetized healthy goats

Objective The aim of this study was to describe the onset and duration of action of escalating doses of atracurium in healthy, anesthetized goats. Study design Randomized, blinded, triple crossover study. Animals A total of eight (five males and three females) healthy goats weighing 42.7-123.5 kg and aged from 11 months to 8 years. Methods Goats were anesthetized three times with propofol and anesthesia was maintained with isoflurane. One of three doses of atracurium was administered intravenously 30 minutes after induction: 0.25 mg kg(-1) (AT25), 0.5 mg kg(-1) (AT50) or 0.75 mg kg(-1) (AT75). Acceleromyographic train-of-four ratio (TOFR) followed by train-of-four counts (TOFC) were recorded at 30 second intervals after atracurium administration to determine blockade onset (TOFC = 0). The TOFR followed by TOFC were recorded at 5 minute intervals until return to pre-atracurium baseline (TOFR = 1.0). Normally distributed data were analyzed with repeated measures anova and a Tukey multiple comparison test. Data not normally distributed were analyzed with a Friedman test and a Dunn's multiple comparison test. Results For AT50 and AT75, 100% of goats achieved TOFC = 0 after atracurium administration. For AT25, however, 87.5% of goats achieved TOFC = 0 after atracurium administration. The onset time was shorter for AT75 [1.5 (0.5-1.5) minutes; median (range)] than for AT25 [2 (1-4) minutes] (p = 0.048). The duration of action [from onset time to complete reversal (TOFR = 1.0)] was significantly shorter for AT25 (52 +/- 12 minutes, mean +/- SD) than for AT50 (77 +/- 18 minutes) (p < 0.001) and AT75 (85 +/- 16 minutes) (p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in duration between AT50 and AT75 (p = 0.238). Conclusions and clinical relevance Doses of 0.5 and 0.75 mg kg(-1) atracurium may produce complete neuromuscular blockade in healthy, anesthetized goats.