Behavioral and cardiorespiratory effects of a medetomidine and tramadol combination in horses
- Author:
Ahram KIM
1
;
Inhyung LEE
;
Kyuyoung LEE
;
Eun-Bee LEE
;
Jong-Pil SEO
Author Information
- Publication Type:Research Report
- From:Journal of Veterinary Science 2026;27(2):e17-
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Objective:This study assessed the behavioral and cardiorespiratory effects of medetomidine (M) administered with and without tramadol (T) in horses.
Methods:Eight horses were sedated intravenously with M (5 µg/kg) alone or with T (2 mg/ kg) in a arandomized, blind, two-way crossover trial. Behavioral responses, including head height above the ground (HHAG), postural instability (PI), and response to pressure stimulus (RPS), and cardiorespiratory responses, including vital variables and blood analyses, were assessed following administration.
Results:There were no clinically meaningful differences in cardiorespiratory values, HHAG, or PI between the groups. The RPS score over the scapula was significantly higher in the medetomidine and tramadol (MT) group (p < 0.05) and a trend towards a higher RPS score over the femur was observed (p = 0.08) in the MT group. Heart rate decreased significantly below baseline from 10 to 40 min in both treatments.
Conclusions:and Relevance: These results suggest that the MT combination may provide sufficient sedation and analgesia with minimal cardiorespiratory changes in horses.
