Effect of high pressure on EEG burst suppression dose of thiopental in rats

The anesthetic induction dose of thiopental in rats was studied at 1 ATA air, 1 ATA helium-oxygen (He-O2), 4 ATA air, and at 4 ATA air plus 67 ATA helium (71 ATA). The compression rate was 0.3 ATA/min, and 1 h was spent at pressure before the experiment started. Thiopental was infused at a rate of 7.5 mg X kg-1 X min-1. The depth of anesthesia was assessed by electroencephalographic (EEG) recording using burst suppression of 1 s as the biological end point. The mean induction dose at 1 ATA air was 53.1 mg/kg and at 71 ATA was 74.7 mg/kg, an increase of 41%. The induction doses at 1 ATA He-O2 and 4 ATA air were 46.4 mg/kg and 45.3 mg/kg, respectively.