Abstract
To evaluate the analgesic effect of epidural morphine in dogs, a clinical trial was performed using 119 dogs that underwent various surgical operations at Veterinary Hospital of the University of Tokyo. The pain score, sedation score, heart rate and respiratory rate were recorded at 0. 5, 2, 4, 8, 12, 18, 24 hours after the surgery (extubation: time 0) . From 0.5 to 18 hours after the surgery, the dogs administerd with morphine showed statistically lower values in pain score compared with control group. Except for some dogs that had received the major operation in the upper abdomen or some orthopedic cases, epidural administration of morphine provided sufficient analgesic effects against postoperative pain. Even in high risk patients or geriatric dogs, there were no side effects caused by administration of morphine, such as hypopnea.
