Anesthetic efficacy of ketamine, ketamine-tramadol and ketamine-ketorolac in chicks

Ketamine produces ordinary general anesthesia characterized by weak hypnosis and analgesia leading to complications during surgical operations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the combination of ketorolac or tramadol to enhance ketamine anesthesia in 7 to 20-day-old chicks and its feasibility and practical application for induction of general anesthesia in veterinary medicine. Hypnotic and analgesic Median Effective Doses (ED50s) of ketamine alone and combination with tramadol or ketorolac were determined by the up-and-down method, then the ED50 values of these combinations were used for measurement of hypnotic and analgesic criteria moreover, their effect on serum Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST) and Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) was assayed. Ketamine hypnosis and analgesia were increased when mixed with tramadol (26 and 39%) or ketorolac (27 and 40%), respectively. Ketamine-ketorolac mixture was better combination of inducing the faster onset of anesthesia and short recovery with the longest duration of action and enhancing analgesia when compared to ketamine alone or in combination with tramadol and is preferred for induction of anesthesia. The liver function enzymes, including AST and ALT, showed no significant difference among all above mentioned groups. The data of this experimental study reveal the superiority of using ketorolac (instead of tramadol) in combination with ketamine for induction of general anesthesia in the chicks.