Continuous infusion anaesthesia with propofol in dogs: clinically optimized dosages

Propofol was used for 52 anaesthesias of dogs undergoing short term surgical procedures. All the dogs were premedicated with atropine (0.03 mg/kg) and acetylpromazine (0.05 mg/kg) given i.m. An induction dose of 3 mg/kg i.v. of propofol was administered as a bolus, 20 min after premedication. The infusion of propofol, calculated on 0.3 mg/kg min-1, was immediately initiated. Continuous infusion anaesthesia under different noxious stimuli provided similar recovery times. Higher infusion doses of propofol was necessary for endoscopic examinations and for younger patients, whereas lower infusion doses were sufficient for repeated anaesthesias for radiotherapy for elderly animals.