title: Isoflurane: An Ideal Anesthetic for Rodent Orthotopic Liver Transplantation Surgery?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Because the choice of anesthetic affects the rodent orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) model, we compared the effects of isoflurane, ketamine, chloral hydrate, and pentobarbital on the OLT model.
  
  
  METHODS
  OLT was performed using the two-cuff technique. Two hundred male rats were randomly divided into five groups: control, isoflurane, ketamine, chloral hydrate, and pentobarbital groups. Rectal temperatures, respiratory rates, arterial blood values (pH, PaCO2, PaO2, and SatO2), liver function tests and histopathology, recovery times, and anhepatic stage mortality rates were assessed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared with controls, respiratory rates decreased by 20% in the isoflurane group, and decreased by 40%-50% in the ketamine, chloral hydrate, and pentobarbital groups. The PaO2, SatO2, and pH levels in the ketamine, chloral hydrate, and pentobarbital groups were significantly lower than those in the isoflurane and control groups (P < .05). Only the pentobarbital group displayed significant liver histopathologic changes along with significantly higher levels of serum alanine aminotransferase and total bilirubin, but a significantly lower level of serum albumin, compared with the control group (P < .05). The isoflurane group had a 0% anhepatic stage mortality rate compared with rates of 30%-40% in the other anesthetic groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Isoflurane should be the preferred anesthetic for rodent OLT surgery due to its minimal respiratory and hepatic physiological effects as well as its low anhepatic phase mortality rate. Secondary to isoflurane, ketamine and chloral hydrate may be administered as donor anesthetics. Pentobarbital use should be avoided entirely in rodent OLT surgery due to its significant hepatotoxic effects.
authors: Chongqing Key Laboratory of Hepatobiliary Surgery and the Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors: D
authors: D
authors: Cao
authors: Chongqing Key Laboratory of Hepatobiliary Surgery and the Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors: Y
authors: Y
authors: Liu
authors: Chongqing Key Laboratory of Hepatobiliary Surgery and the Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Li
authors: Chongqing Key Laboratory of Hepatobiliary Surgery and the Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China. Electronic address: gongjianping11@126.com.
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Gong
mesh_terms: D000777:Anesthetics; D000818:Animals; D002697:Chloral Hydrate; D007530:Isoflurane; D007649:Ketamine; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D023421:Models, Animal; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic; D010424:Pentobarbital; D011897:Random Allocation; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012119:Respiration / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000777:Anesthetics; D002697:Chloral Hydrate; D007649:Ketamine; D007530:Isoflurane; D010424:Pentobarbital