Ann Weil, DVM, DACVAA

Does this analgesic play a role in pain management in cats after all?

Veterinary anesthesiologist Dr. Ann Weil provides five important pointers on anesthetizing cats and dogs.

Endoscopy is the process of looking inside the body by inserting a rigid or flexible tube into the body and examining an image of the interior of an organ or cavity. An additional instrument may be inserted in order to biopsy tissue or retrieve foreign objects.

The purpose of this talk today is to discuss a variety of issues for general anesthesia of patients undergoing non-elective procedures. This will include anesthetic tips for urinary tract obstruction, cesarean section, gastric dilation volvulus, and foreign body removal.

Traditionally, analgesic drugs like opioids, alpha-2 agents, local anesthetics, NSAIDs and dissociative anesthetics have been administered as a single dose treatment. When drugs are given in this manner, the patient will experience peaks and troughs in the plasma drug level.

Liver disease patients can present with a diverse clinical spectrum. Patients with mild liver disease can be expected to have fewer problems with general anesthesia than patients with severe, fulminant disease.