Abstract
Objective—To determine the minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) of sevoflurane in spontaneously breathing llamas and alpacas.
Design—Prospective study.
Animals—6 healthy adult llamas and 6 healthy adult alpacas.
Procedure—Anesthesia was induced with sevoflurane delivered with oxygen through a mask. An endotracheal tube was inserted, and a port for continuous measurement of end-tidal and inspired sevoflurane concentrations was placed between the endotracheal tube and the breathing circuit. After equilibration at an end-tidal-to-inspired sevoflurane concentration ratio > 0.90 for 15 minutes, a 50-Hz, 80-mA electrical stimulus was applied to the antebrachium until a response was obtained (ie, gross purposeful movement) or for up to 1 minute. The vaporizer setting was increased or decreased to effect a 10 to 20% change in end-tidal sevoflurane concentration, and equilibration and stimulus were repeated. The MAC was defined as the mean of the lowest end-tidal sevoflurane concentration that prevented a positive response and the highest concentration that allowed a positive response.
Results—Mean ± SD MAC of sevoflurane was 2.29 ± 0.14% in llamas and 2.33 ± 0.09% in alpacas. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—The MAC of sevoflurane in llamas and alpacas was similar to that reported for other species. (J Am Vet Med Assoc 2003;223:1167–1169)
