Trujanovic, R.; Rohrbach, H. Ultrasound-Guided Block of the Sciatic and the Femoral Nerves in Rabbits—A Descriptive Anatomical Study. Animals2023, 13, 2393.
Trujanovic, R.; Rohrbach, H. Ultrasound-Guided Block of the Sciatic and the Femoral Nerves in Rabbits—A Descriptive Anatomical Study. Animals 2023, 13, 2393.
Trujanovic, R.; Rohrbach, H. Ultrasound-Guided Block of the Sciatic and the Femoral Nerves in Rabbits—A Descriptive Anatomical Study. Animals2023, 13, 2393.
Trujanovic, R.; Rohrbach, H. Ultrasound-Guided Block of the Sciatic and the Femoral Nerves in Rabbits—A Descriptive Anatomical Study. Animals 2023, 13, 2393.
Abstract
The rabbit is a popular animal model for human biomechanical research involving surgery at the hind limb. General anesthesia in rabbits is associated with significantly higher mortality rates than in dogs and cats. In addition, as prey animals, rabbits tend to mask signs of pain, making early detection particularly difficult. Regional anaesthesia, as an adjunct to general anaesthesia, may markedly reduce the need for systemic anaesthetic and analgesic drugs, limiting their associated side effects. In other species, a block of the sciatic (ScN) and the femoral nerves (FN) is usually applied in patients undergoing hind limb surgery. In phase 1 of this study, the ScN and the FN have been localized and an appropriate approach under sonographic guidance has been evaluated. In phase 2, a mixture of methylene blue and lidocaine have been administered to the ScN and the FN in 10 cadavers (20 hind limbs). Staining of the nerves was evaluated by dissection. Ultrasonographically, the ScN appeared as a binocular structure surrounded by a hyperechoic rim. The FN appeared as a hypoechoic structure in the dorsal part of the IPM, becoming hyperechoic/honey-comb-like in the ventral part. Both nerves could be successfully stained in all animals over a median length of 2.3 cm which was considered effective. This technique allows a feasible and accurate access to block of the ScN and the FN and may lead to successful analgesia in rabbits undergoing hind limb surgery.
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