The use of propofol during euthanasia in veterinary medicine | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts

In today's VETgirl online veterinary continuing education podcast, we review the use of propofol during euthanasia in veterinary medicine. Perhaps one of the most important aspects of our veterinary oath is to relieve animal suffering. I know when I first entered practice after graduation I was surprised by the frequency in which I was performing euthanasia on companion animals. I soon realized how important this service is for the pets and for the pet parent and the impact my skills and my medicine can have on this last shared experience between pet parent and pet. We all tend to develop our own routine way of performing euthanasia be it a designated room with dim lighting, perhaps quiet music, maybe some fluffy pillows and beds - anything that might promote peace and relaxation. As for the medical side of euthanasia, we understand that the overdose of pentobarbital derivative used during euthanasia provides a peaceful transition for the pet. But outwardly, it may not always look so peaceful to the pet parent. During euthanasia, I'll admit that I'm always holding my breath that during the euthanasia the pet will simply close their eyes (which we know doesn't typically happen), fall asleep, and take his last breath peacefully. But sometimes we encounter rather unfortunate - albeit rare - side effects of the medication or of the body's response to illness and the medication. For starters, we know that the eyes of animals will typically remain open to some degree. And, just as in humans, animals can have involuntary or voluntary release of bladder and bowel function, some may vocalize from dysphoria or disease, and some may exhibit muscle fasciculations. As an attempt to minimize these adverse events, we can reach for adjunctive medications to mitigate these unwanted responses. Propofol is a popular adjunctive anesthetic used in euthanasia, but to date, no veterinary studies have been conducted to evaluate whether this added anesthesia agent has significant benefits when used in euthanasia.