Decrease of ether induction time after exposure to dysbaric conditions in rat

In 22 adult male albino rats (means = 565 g) it was consistently observed that the time required to anesthetize them with 5 ml of diethyl ether after a hyperbaric exposure of 6 ATA using compressed air decreased depending on the severity of the animals' post-decompression reaction to the compression-decompression exposure. Monitoring the time required to lightly anesthetize adult male rats with diethyl ether to a point of losing the righting reflex after a particular compression-decompression exposure provided an indication of the rats' post-exposure state of health. This technique aided in correctly establishing if a rat developed a degree of decompression sickness that may have otherwise gone unnoticed. The loss of resistance to ether induction as a result of decompression sickness may be related to alterations in the blood-brain barrier, blood perfusion inequities, or changes in cardiopulmonary mechanics due to the presence of gaseous emboli. Rats that survived the compression-decompression exposures showed a marked resistance to ether induction after 24 h of recovery.