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Use of a Piglet Model for the Study of Anesthetic-induced Developmental Neurotoxicity (AIDN): A Translational Neuroscience Approach
Published on: June 11, 2017
Racemic ketamine does not abolish cerebrovascular autoregulation in the pig
A Schmidt1, E Ryding, J Akeson
1Department of Anesthesia, Lund University, Malmö University Hospital, Malmö, Sweden. anders.schmidt@helsingborglasarett.se
Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica
|April 18, 2003
Summary
Ketamine anesthesia in pigs does not abolish cerebral blood flow autoregulation. This study clarifies previous contradictory findings on ketamine
Area of Science:
- Anesthesiology
- Neuroscience
- Physiology
Background:
- Cerebral blood flow (CBF) autoregulation during ketamine anesthesia is poorly understood.
- Existing research on ketamine's effects on cerebral hemodynamics presents conflicting results.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the cerebrovascular response to induced changes in mean arterial pressure (MAP) under ketamine anesthesia.
- To clarify the impact of ketamine on the autoregulation of cerebral blood flow.
Main Methods:
- Anesthesia was induced with propofol and maintained with ketamine infusion in eight pigs.
- Cerebral blood flow (CBF) was measured using the intra-arterial xenon clearance technique.
- Mean arterial pressure (MAP) was manipulated by ±40% using balloon catheters, and pressure-flow relationships were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Changes in MAP by up to ±43% resulted in only minor alterations in CBF (±15%).
- Analysis of pressure-flow curves indicated a lack of significant autoregulation, with a regression coefficient significantly different from established autoregulation.
- The study found that autoregulation of CBF is not abolished during ketamine infusion.
Conclusions:
- Continuous ketamine infusion in pigs does not abolish cerebral blood flow autoregulation.
- The findings suggest that previous contradictory conclusions regarding ketamine's effects on cerebral hemodynamics may not be due to severe impairment of autoregulation.

