Perioperative fluid administration to optimise haemodynamics without fluid overload in anaesthetised dogs : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Veterinary Science at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand

Abstract

Perioperative fluid therapy is the mainstay of anaesthetic management. Fluid administration improves haemodynamics during anaesthesia as it increases preload and thus cardiac output and blood pressure. However, excessive fluid administration can cause detrimental adverse effects, such as haemodulution and oedema, resulting in prolonged hospital stay and increased morbidity and mortality in people. Therefore, fluid administration should be restricted to those who are able to increase stroke volume or cardiac output in response to the fluid administration (responders) and should not be given to those who are unable to do so (non-responders) based on the famous “Frank–Starling law of the heart”

Previously static parameters such as central venous pressure were believed to be a clinical gold standard to estimate preload and fluid responsiveness. Over the last decade, dynamic parameters such as pulse pressure variation and pleth variability index have been shown to be reliable predictors for fluid responsiveness in people. This study found that pulse pressure variation and pleth variability index were more accurate than central venous pressure for predicting fluid responsiveness in dogs.

Mini-fluid challenge is another technique that is currently available and can be reliably used to determine fluid responsiveness in human medicine. Mini-fluid challenge is an administration of a small amount of fluid to increase preload. Thus, fluid responsiveness can be assessed based on whether stroke volume increases following mini-fluid challenge according to the Frank-Starling curve. The change in stroke volume of a heart at the steep portion of the Frank-Starling curve will be greater than at the plateau portion after mini-fluid challenge. The studies revealed a percentage change in pulse wave transit time (a surrogate parameter of stroke volume, which was also one of results in this thesis) following mini-fluid challenge could predict fluid responsiveness in mechanically ventilated anaesthetised dogs under an experimental condition, and spontaneously breathing anaesthetised dogs undergoing stifle surgery in clinical setting.

Lastly, these methods are still of limited use in veterinary clinical practice because of availability of equipment, difficulty of their interpretation and a cumbersome process. The main purpose of this thesis was to obtain evidence on how to optimise haemodynamics in anaesthetised dogs and prevent excessive fluid administration. The time when most practitioners administer a bolus of fluid during anaesthesia is when hypotension is encountered because of anaesthesia. Thus, prevention of hypotension could avoid excessive fluid administration. Therefore, the study found that prophylactic noradrenaline administration, which counteracts some of the cardiovascular adverse effects of anaesthesia, was able to prevent hypotension, and thus minimise fluid administration in anaesthetised dogs.

Although all of these methods tested in this thesis have pros and cons in clinical veterinary practice, they were shown to be able to optimise haemodynamics without fluid overload in anaesthetised dogs.