Individual Organ Contributions to the Decrease in Whole-body VO2 with Isoflurane

Abstract

The present study was designed to determine whether there were differebnces between the effects of isoflurane and halothane on canine whole-body Vo2 and myocardial, splanchnic, renal, and skelatal muscle Vo2's were determined at isoflurane concentrations equivilent to those used in a previous study with holothane. With increases in isoflurane, whole-body Vo2 decreased progressively. As with halothane, the major comdial Vo2 that was related to a reduction in cardiac output and arterial blood pressure; contributions from other organs were minor. No significant difference between the effects of isoflurane and halothane on whole-body or individual organ Vo2's was found. These finding support the view that anesthetic agents are no general metabolic depressants and that observed changed in whole-body Vo2 reflect the su-mated changes in individual argan Vo2's occasioned by an anesthetic-induced change in organ function and metabolic requirements.