NOAH Compendium of Animal Medicines: Domosedan 10 mg/ml Solution for Injection

Domosedan 10 mg/ml Solution for Injection

Dosage and administration

The following procedure is recommended: Use two sterile needles, one to fill the syringe from the bottle and one to inject the patient. Once the required dose has been withdrawn from the vial, the syringe should be removed from the needle. A separate sterile needle should be inserted into the injection site and the syringe connected to it. The needles should be discarded.

Domosedan alone for sedation

For parenteral use by IM or slow IV injection. Onset of effect is more rapid following intravenous administration.

Dosage table
Anticipated level of sedation	Light	Moderate	Profound
Dosage (IM or IV) mcg/kg	10 - 20	20 - 40	40 - 80
Dose (IM or IV) ml/100 kg	0.1 - 0.2	0.2-0.4	0.4 - 0.8
Commencement of effect (mins)
IV	3	2	1
IM	5	5	5
Duration of action (hrs)	0.5 - 1	0.5 - 1	0.5 - 2
Note these times are approximate and will vary in individual animals.

Domosedan with butorphanol for sedation

Dosage: 0.10 ml Domosedan/100 kg (10 mcg/kg detomidine hydrochloride) intravenously, followed within 5 minutes by 25μg/kg butorphanol (e.g. 0.25ml/100kg of a 10mg/ml solution), intravenously. Clinical experience has shown that 5mg (0.5ml) Domosedan and 10mg (e.g. 1ml of a 10 mg/ml solution) butorphanol affords effective, safe sedation in horses above 200 kg bodyweight.

Doses (ml) for Domosedan/butorphanol sedation and analgesia IV
kg	Domosedan (10mg/ml)	butorphanol (10 mg/ml)
50	0.05	0.10
100	0.10	0.25
150	0.20	0.4
200	0.25	0.5
250	0.3	0.65
300	0.35	0.75
350	0.4	0.9
400	0.5	1.0
450	0.55	1.15
500	0.6	1.25
550	0.65	1.4
Clinical experience has shown that these doses are safe and effective in horses over 200kg
Domosedan 0.5ml, butorphanol (10 mg/ml) 1.0ml

Domosedan and ketamine (short duration anaesthesia)

Ketamine must not be used as the sole anaesthetic agent in horses. To obtain satisfactory surgical anaesthesia, it is important that the following procedure is used:

Administer Domosedan at a dose rate of 20 mcg/kg by intravenous injection.

Allow 5 minutes for the horse to become deeply sedated then administer ketamine at a dose rate of 2.2 mg/kg as an intravenous bolus.

Onset of anaesthesia is gradual, the horse taking approximately 1 minute to become recumbent. In large fit horses recumbency may take up to 3 minutes.

Anaesthesia will continue to deepen for a further 1 - 2 minutes and during this time the horse should be left quietly. Horses regain sternal recumbency approximately 20 minutes post ketamine administration.

The duration of surgical anaesthesia is approximately 10 - 15 minutes and if for any reason it is necessary to prolong anaesthesia, thiopentone sodium can be administered IV in boluses of 1 mg/kg as required. Total doses of 5 mg/kg (five 1 mg/kg increments) have been given. Total doses greater than this may reduce the quality of recovery.

Thiopentone can also be administered (as above regime) if sufficient depth of anaesthesia is not achieved.

The horse should be allowed to stand in its own time. The horse may be ataxic if it stands prematurely and therefore it should be encouraged to remain recumbent.

To facilitate handling and the administration of the induction agents, some horses have received acepromazine by intramuscular injection at a dose rate of 0.03 mg/kg at least 45 minutes before induction of anaesthesia.