Ketamine continues to be extensively used in the anesthetic management of horses, nonhuman primates and other non-domesticated species. However, its popularity as an anesthetic induction agent in dogs and cats continues to decline in the United States. Khursheed Mama, DVM, DACVAA, Colorado State University reviews ketamine with this outline:
- Pharmacokinetics and clinic use
- Cardiovascular effects
- Respiratory effects
- Analgesia
- Additional adverse effects
Source: Plumb’s Therapeutics, January 2018.
Overview:
- The commercially available formulation, ketamine hydrochloride, is acidic and can cause pain on intramuscular injection (author experience). However, the drug itself—which is a racemic mixture of 2 optical isomers—is a weak base, with a pKa of 7.5.
- No receptor-specific reversal agent exists for ketamine.
Also see: Animal Health Digest, Ketamine search review. See other posts that include information on ketamine.