Objective: To determine the median effective dose (ED(50); equivalent to the minimum alveolar concentration [MAC]) of isoflurane, sevoflurane, and desflurane for anesthesia in iguanas.
Animals: 6 healthy adult green iguanas.
Procedure: In unmedicated iguanas, anesthesia was induced and maintained with each of the 3 volatile drugs administered on separate days according to a Latin square design. Iguanas were endotracheally intubated, mechanically ventilated, and instrumented for cardiovascular and respiratory measurements. During each period of anesthesia, MAC was determined in triplicate. The mean value of 2 consecutive expired anesthetic concentrations, 1 that just permitted and 1 that just prevented gross purposeful movement in response to supramaximal electrical stimulus, and that were not different by more than 15%, was deemed the MAC.
Results: Mean +/- SD values for the third MAC determination for isoflurane, sevoflurane, and desflurane were 1.8 +/- 0.3%, 3.1 +/- 1.0%, and 8.9 +/- 2.1% of atmospheric pressure, respectively. The MAC for all inhaled agents was, on average, 22% greater for the first measurement than for the third measurement.
Conclusions and clinical relevance: Over time, MACs decreased for all 3 agents. Final MAC measurements were similar to values reported for other species. The decrease in MACs over time may be at least partly explained by limitations of anesthetic uptake and distribution imposed by the reptilian cardiorespiratory system. Hence, for a constant end-tidal anesthetic concentration in an iguana, the plane of anesthesia may deepen over time, which could contribute to increased morbidity during prolonged procedures.