Halothane hepatotoxicity and fluoride production in mice and rats.

Other investigators have demonstrated halothane-induced hepatic injury in rats anesthetized in hypoxic environments. The authors examined this phenomenon in mice and investigated plasma fluoride levels in mice and rats anesthetized with halothane in 40, 21 and 7 per cent oxygen with or without pretreatment with phenobarbital or carbon tetrachloride. They found no hepatic necrosis in mice. Mice produced less fluoride than rats. This difference in halothane metabolism between Sprague-Dawley rats and Swiss-Webster mice may explain the failure to observe hepatic necrosis in mice.