Shawn K Puri, Jing Li, Ming Xiong, Johan Reyes, Pratap R. Nadavaluru, Jiang Hong Ye, Alex Bekker

Show more
Department of Anesthesiology, New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA.
Show less

Abstract: Venous catheterization, endotracheal intubation, and mechanical ventilation are necessary for performing total intravenous general anesthesia in rats. Intubation and IV cannulation of the rat is challenging because of the animals’ small size and the lack of equipment specifically designed for the restricted anatomical dimensions. Here, we present methods for tail venous catheterization and intubation that are quickly learned by the provider with clinical operating room experience but lack experience in the lab. For tail venous catheterization, each rat (n = 20) was gently restrained in a rat chamber; its tail was placed in warm water for 10 minutes, and a 24 gauge intravenous catheter was inserted into the lateral tail vein. The catheter was fixed in place using tape and attached to a T-connector for drug administration. A bolus of propofol (n = 10), ketamine (n = 7), or etomidate (n = 3) was administered to achieve rapid deep anesthesia. Once anesthetized, rats were intubated with the aid of a modified pediatric laryngoscope. The standard miller blade 0 was cut on each side for approximately 2/3 of the total blade length to remove a total of half the width. After the ventilator was properly set, the rats’ vital signs and metabolic status were monitored. Throughout the one-hour infusion, the rats’ physiologic parameters were maintained within normal range. These results indicate that intravenous general anesthesia can be performed effectively and safely in small animals using the refined catheterization and intubation methods tested in this study. These techniques are easily reproducible and learned as they mimic the tools and strategies commonly used in the OR.

Keywords: Refinement, Venous Catheterization, Endotracheal Intubation, Intravenous General Anesthesia, Rat

Cite this paper: Puri, S. , Li, J. , Xiong, M. , Reyes, J. , Nadavaluru, P. , Ye, J. and Bekker, A. (2015) Method for Single Intravenous Anesthetic Infusion in a Rodent Model. Open Journal of Anesthesiology, 5, 96-104. doi: 10.4236/ojanes.2015.55019.

References

[1]   Sneyd, J.R. (2004) Recent Advances in Intravenous Anaesthesia. British Journal of Anaesthesia, 93, 725-736.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/bja/aeh253

[2]   Clary, E.M., O’Halloran, E.K., De La Fuentes, S.G. and Eubanks, S. (2004) Videoendoscopic Endotracheal Intubation of the Rat. Laboratory Animals, 38, 158-161.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1258/002367704322968830

[3]   Costa, D.L., Lehmann, J.R., Harold, W.M. and Drew, R.T. (1986) Transoral Tracheal Intubation of Rodents Using a Fiberoptic Laryngoscope. Laboratory Animal Science, 36, 256-261.

[4]   Linden, R.D., Shields, C.B., Zhang, Y.P., Edmonds, H.L. and Hunt, M.A. (2000) A Laryngoscope Designed for Intubation of the Rat. Contemporary Topics in Laboratory Animal Science, 39, 40-42.

[5]   Kastl, S., Kotschenreuther, U., Hille, B., Schmidt, J., Gepp, H. and Hohenberger, W. (2004) Simplification of Rat Intubation on Inclined Metal Plate. Advances in Physiology Education, 28, 29-32.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/advan.00008.2003

[6]   Weksler, B., Ng, B., Lenert, J. and Burt, M. (1985) A Simplified Method for Endotracheal Intubation in the Rat. Journal of Applied Physiology, 76, 1823-1825.

[7]   Jou, I.M., Tsai, Y.T., Tsai, C.L., Wu, M.H., Chang, H.Y. and Wang, N.S. (2000) Simplified Rat Intubation Using a New Oropharyngeal Intubation Wedge. Journal of Applied Physiology, 89, 1766-1770.

[8]   Molthen, R.C. (2006) A Simple, Inexpensive, and Efective Light-Carrying Laryngoscopic Blade for Orotracheal Intubation of Rats. Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science, 45, 88-93.

[9]   Rivard, A.L., Simura, K.J., Mohammed, S., Magembe, A.J., Pearson, H.M., Hallman, M.R., Barnett, S.J., Gatlin, D.L., Gallegos, R.P. and Biano, R.W. (2006) Rat Intubation and Ventilation for Surgical Research. Journal of Investigative Surgery, 19, 267-274.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08941930600778297

[10]   Conybeare, G., Leslie, G.B., Angles, K., Barrett, R.J., Luke, J.S. and Gask, D.R. (1988) An Improved Simple Technique for the Collection of Blood Samples from Rats and Mice. Laboratory Animals, 22, 177-182.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1258/002367788780864529

[11]   Larsson, J.E. and Wahlstrom, G. (1998) The Influence of Age and Administration Rate on the Brain Sensitivity to Propofol in Rats. Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica, 42, 987-994.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1399-6576.1998.tb05360.x

[12]   Li, J., Xiong, M., Alhashem, H.M., Zhang, Y., Tilak, V., Patel, A., Siegel, A., Ye, J.H. and Bekker, A. (2014) Effects of Prenatal Propofol Exposure on Postnatal Development in Rats. Neurotoxicology and Teratology, 43, 51-58.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ntt.2014.03.006

[13]   Xiong, M., Li, J., Alhashem, H.M., Tilak, V., Patel, A., Pisklakov, S., Siegel, A., Ye, J.H. and Bekker, A. (2014) Propofol Exposure in Pregnant Rats Induces Neurotoxicity and Persistent Learning Deficit in the Offspring. Brain Sciences, 4, 356-375.
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/brainsci4020356