Effects of tramadol and acepromazine on pressure and thermal thresholds were examined in eight cats. After baseline measurements, subcutaneous (SC) tramadol 1 mg/kg, acepromazine 0.1 mg/kg, tramadol 1 mg/kg with acepromazine 0.1 mg/kg, or saline 0.3 ml were given. Serial measurements were made for 24 h. Mean thermal thresholds did not change significantly [analysis of variance (ANOVA)] from baseline. The maximum thermal threshold increase above baseline was 2.8±2.8°C at 6 h ( P>0.05) after tramadol; it was above the 95% confidence interval (CI) at 0.75, 3 and 6 h. Pressure thresholds increased above baseline from 0.25 to 2 h after acepromazine ( P<0.05) and from 0.5 to 3 h after the combination ( P<0.05), with a maximum increase of 132±156 mmHg 0.25 h after acepromazine and 197±129 mmHg 0.5 h after the combination. Pressure thresholds were above the 95% CI from 0.25 to 2 h after acepromazine and from 0.5 to 3 h after the combination. SC tramadol at 1 mg/kg in cats had limited effect on thermal and pressure nociception, but this was enhanced by acepromazine. Acepromazine alone had pressure antinociceptive effects.

It is almost 20 years since the largest observational, multicentre study evaluating the risks of mortality associated with general anaesthesia in horses. We proposed an internet-based method to collect data (cleaned and analysed with R) in a multicentre, cohort, observational, analytical, longitudinal and prospective study to evaluate peri-operative equine mortality. The objective was to report the usefulness of the method, illustrated with the preliminary data, including outcomes for horses seven days after undergoing general anaesthesia and certain procedures using standing sedation. Within six months, data from 6701 procedures under general anaesthesia and 1955 standing sedations from 69 centres were collected. The results showed (i) the utility of the method; also, that (ii) the overall mortality rate for general anaesthesia within the seven-day outcome period was 1.0%. In horses undergoing procedures other than exploratory laparotomy for colic (“noncolics”), the rate was lower, 0.6%, and in “colics” it was higher, at 3.4%. For standing sedations, the overall mortality rate was 0.2%. Finally, (iii) we present some descriptive data that demonstrate new developments since the previous CEPEF2. In conclusion, horses clearly still die unexpectedly when undergoing procedures under general anaesthesia or standing sedation. Our method is suitable for case collection for future studies.

Drug policy, whether for legal or illegal substances, is a controversial field that encompasses many complex issues. Policies can have effects on a myriad of outcomes and stakeholders differ in the outcomes they consider and value, while relevant knowledge on policy effects is dispersed across multiple research disciplines making integrated judgements difficult. Experts on drug harms, addiction, criminology and drug policy were invited to a decision conference to develop a multi-criterion decision analysis (MCDA) model for appraising alternative regulatory regimes. Participants collectively defined regulatory regimes and identified outcome criteria reflecting ethical and normative concerns. For cannabis and alcohol separately, participants evaluated each regulatory regime on each criterion and weighted the criteria to provide summary scores for comparing different regimes. Four generic regulatory regimes were defined: absolute prohibition, decriminalisation, state control and free market. Participants also identified 27 relevant criteria which were organised into seven thematically related clusters. State control was the preferred regime for both alcohol and cannabis. The ranking of the regimes was robust to variations in the criterion-specific weights. The MCDA process allowed the participants to deconstruct complex drug policy issues into a set of simpler judgements that led to consensus about the results.

Quantification of pain plays a vital role in the diagnosis and management of pain in animals. In order to refine and validate an acute pain scale for horses a prospective, randomized, blinded study was conducted. Twenty-four client owned adult horses were recruited and allocated to one of four following groups: anaesthesia only (GA); pre-emptive analgesia and anaesthesia (GAA,); anaesthesia, castration and postoperative analgesia (GC); or pre-emptive analgesia, anaesthesia and castration (GCA). One investigator, unaware of the treatment group, assessed all horses at time-points before and after intervention and completed the pain scale. Videos were also obtained at these time-points and were evaluated by a further four blinded evaluators who also completed the scale. The data were used to investigate the relevance, specificity, criterion validity and inter- and intra-observer reliability of each item on the pain scale, and to evaluate construct validity and responsiveness of the scale. Construct validity was demonstrated by the observed differences in scores between the groups, four hours after anaesthetic recovery and before administration of systemic analgesia in the GC group. Inter- and intra-observer reliability for the items was only satisfactory. Subsequently the pain scale was refined, based on results for relevance, specificity and total item correlation. Scale refinement and exclusion of items that did not meet predefined requirements generated a selection of relevant pain behaviours in horses. After further validation for reliability, these may be used to evaluate pain under clinical and experimental conditions.

One hundred female cats undergoing routine ovariohysterectomy under midazolam-medetomidine-ketamine anaesthesia were included in a blinded, randomised, prospective clinical study to compare postoperative analgesia produced by four analgesic drug combinations given preoperatively (n = 25 per group). A secondary aim was to assess the effects in kittens and pregnant animals. Buprenorphine 180 µg/m ² or butorphanol 6 mg/m ² were given with either carprofen 4 mg/kg (groups BUPC and BUTC, respectively) or meloxicam 0.3 mg/kg (groups BUPM or BUTM, respectively). Medetomidine was not antagonised. A simple, descriptive scale (SDS; 0–4), a dynamic and interactive visual analogue scale (DIVAS; 0–100 mm) and mechanical nociceptive thresholds (MT; 2.5-mm diameter probe) were used to evaluate postoperative pain. All pain scores were low (DIVAS <10 mm, SDS 10 N) and there were no significant differences between the groups. It was concluded that all protocols provided adequate analgesia and when used with midazolam-medetomidine-ketamine are effective for routine feline ovariohysterectomy.