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Refinement of intraperitoneal injection of sodium pentobarbital for euthanasia in laboratory rats (Rattus norvegicus)

Overview of attention for article published in BMC Veterinary Research, February 2017
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Title
Refinement of intraperitoneal injection of sodium pentobarbital for euthanasia in laboratory rats (Rattus norvegicus)
Published in
BMC Veterinary Research, February 2017
DOI 10.1186/s12917-017-0982-y
Pubmed ID
Authors

Katie K Zatroch, Cameron G. Knight, Julie N. Reimer, Daniel S. J. Pang

Abstract

The Canadian Council on Animal Care and American Veterinary Medical Association classify intraperitoneal (IP) pentobarbital as an acceptable euthanasia method in rats. However, national guidelines do not exist for a recommended dose or volume and IP euthanasia has been described as unreliable, with misinjections leading to variable success in ensuring a timely death. The aims of this study were to assess and improve efficacy and consistency of IP euthanasia. In a randomized, blinded study, 51 adult female Sprague-Dawley rats (170-495 g) received one of four treatments: low-dose low-volume (LL) IP pentobarbital (n = 13, 200 mg/kg pentobarbital), low-dose high-volume (LH) IP pentobarbital (n = 14, 200 mg/kg diluted 1:3 with phosphate buffered saline), high-dose high-volume (HH, n = 14, 800 mg/kg pentobarbital), or saline. Times to loss of righting reflex (LORR) and cessation of heartbeat (CHB) were recorded. To identify misinjections, necropsy examinations were performed on all rats. Video recordings of LL and HH groups were analyzed for pain-associated behaviors. Between-group comparisons were performed with 1-way ANOVA and Games-Howell post hoc tests. Variability in CHB was assessed by calculating the coefficient of variation (CV). The fastest euthanasia method (CHB) was HH (283.7 ± 38.0 s), compared with LL (485.8 ± 140.7 s, p = 0.002) and LH (347.7 ± 72.0 s, p = 0.039). Values for CV were: HH, 13.4%; LH, 20.7%; LL, 29.0%. LORR time was longest in LL (139.5 ± 29.6 s), compared with HH (111.6 ± 19.7 s, p = 0.046) and LH (104.2 ± 19.3 s, p = 0.01). Misinjections occurred in 17.0% (7/41) of euthanasia attempts. Pain-associated behavior incidence ranged from 36% (4/11, LL) to 46% (5/11, HH). These data illustrate refinement of the IP pentobarbital euthanasia technique. Both dose and volume contribute to speed of death, with a dose of 800 mg/kg (HH) being the most effective method. An increase in volume alone does not significantly reduce variability. The proportion of misinjections was similar to that of previous studies.

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Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 113 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
Unknown 113 100%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Master 17 15%
Student > Bachelor 16 14%
Researcher 12 11%
Student > Ph. D. Student 10 9%
Student > Postgraduate 9 8%
Other 21 19%
Unknown 28 25%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Medicine and Dentistry 19 17%
Veterinary Science and Veterinary Medicine 13 12%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 11 10%
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science 10 9%
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 8 7%
Other 19 17%
Unknown 33 29%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 2. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 08 April 2017.
All research outputs
#13,543,199
of 22,958,253 outputs
Outputs from BMC Veterinary Research
#941
of 3,059 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#162,097
of 310,766 outputs
Outputs of similar age from BMC Veterinary Research
#21
of 67 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 22,958,253 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 39th percentile – i.e., 39% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 3,059 research outputs from this source. They receive a mean Attention Score of 3.9. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 67% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 310,766 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one is in the 46th percentile – i.e., 46% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
We're also able to compare this research output to 67 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 65% of its contemporaries.