Renal hemodynamics in conscious rats: effects of anesthesia, surgery, and recovery

The influence of barbiturate anesthesia and minor surgical incisions on renal function was assessed in trained, chronically catheterized rats. In addition, renal hemodynamic changes during recovery from ether anesthesia and surgery were examined. Administration of pentobarbital in the chronic animals was associated with a marked reduction in arterial pressure (108 +/- 5 vs. 85 +/- 2 mmHg, P less than 0.01), renal blood flow (8.28 +/- 0.50 vs. 6.20 +/- 0.53 ml X min-1 X 100 g body wt-1, P less than 0.01), and glomerular filtration rate (1.30 +/- 0.10 vs. 0.97 +/- 0.11 ml X min-1 X 100 g body wt-1, P less than 0.01). Responses to Inactin were essentially identical. Small skin incisions during barbiturate anesthesia caused blood pressure to rise, but did not significantly change renal function parameters from already reduced values. In rats studied 2 h after ether anesthesia and surgical placement of catheters, arterial pressure was elevated compared with the same rats studied 4-7 days later (127 +/- 3 vs. 109 +/- 3 mmHg, P less than 0.005). Renal blood flow (5.80 +/- 0.37 vs. 8.90 +/- 0.93 ml X min-1 X 100 g body wt-1, P less than 0.01) and glomerular filtration rate (0.81 +/- 0.07 vs. 1.05 +/- 0.08 ml X min-1 X 100 g body wt-1, P less than 0.001) were markedly depressed during the recovery from surgery. It is concluded that barbiturate anesthesia depresses renal function in rats. This impairment should be considered when interpreting experiments that must be performed under anesthesia. In addition, the "conscious" preparation commonly used for renal studies in rats, i.e., one involving experimentation 2-3 h after ether anesthesia and surgery, is associated with a severe depression of renal hemodynamics.