Endocrine and metabolic responses to halothane and pentobarbitone anaesthesia in sheep

SUMMARY Some metabolic and endocrine responses to anaesthesia in sheep were studied. Adult sheep were anaesthetised with thiopentone and halothane (n=9), acepromazine, thiopentone and halothane (n=8) and pentobarbitone (n=10) on separate occasions. Routine cardiovascular monitoring was carried out and blood samples were taken for assay of cortisol, adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), arginine vasopressin (AVP), glucose and lactate. Halothane anaesthesia induced hypotension, hypercapnia and respiratory acidosis. Sheep anaesthetised with pentobarbitone were also hypercapnic and acidotic but did not develop hypotension. Plasma cortisol, ACTH and AVP (mean maximum values: cortisol: 83 ng/ml, ACTH 278 ng/ml, AVP 135 pg/ml), increased during halothane anaesthesia but did not change significantly from control values during pentobarbitone anaesthesia (mean maximum values: cortisol: 30 ng/ml, ACTH 71 ng/ml, AVP 7.8 pg/ml). Glucose tended to increase during both halothane and pentobarbitone anaesthesia but lactate decreased. It is not clear what facet of halothane anaesthesia evokes the stress response but it may be associated with cardiovascular depression.