[Interactions between renal and general hemodynamics in fentanyl, droperidol, ketamine, thiopental and in peridural anesthesia--animal studies].

The main focus of this paper is to show regulative interactions between cardiac index (CI) and renal blood flow (RBF) with various intravenous anaesthetics under steady state conditions. Several experimental series were carried out on dogs with the following anaesthetic doses (as given per hour and per kilogram body weight-h-1 x kg-1): fentanyl 50 micrograms, ketamine 4 and 10 mg, and thiopentone 10 and 20 mg. The basic anaesthesia used was halothane (0.7 vol.%) in N2O/O2 (ratio about 3:1), because renal function, renal autoregulation and responsiveness to renally effective drugs remain nearly unaltered by this anaesthetic procedure. The experimental set-up allowed separate evaluation of effects caused by basic anaesthesia, by intravenous anaesthetic under examination or by the combination of both. All physiological parameters, such as blood gas parameters, plasma electrolytes and intravasal volume were kept in normal range throughout the experiments. Under all anaesthetics studied, RBF reflects the situation of general metabolism especially of cardiac output, as long as sympathetic innervation of the kidneys remains unaltered. Especially the relationship between RBF and CI corresponds with regulative effects in situations without anaesthesia. Within the blood pressure range of autoregulation RBF is greater under ketamine than normal and smaller under fentanyl and etomidate, whereas all other anaesthetics applied show no effect on RBF. Functional "denervation" of the kidney by means of epidural anaesthesia is capable of terminating those effects caused centrally by opioids and transmitted by sympathetic nerves. Diuresis is increased by thiopentone and by ketamine, whereas fentanyl reduces it. The activity of the plasma renin level does not correspond with the degree of renal vascular resistance. The effect of each anaesthetic drug on RBF has principally to be taken as regulative adaptation to altered circulatory conditions. Increasing plasma renin levels are mainly a compensatory reaction following a decline in arterial blood pressure due to anaesthesia induced sympathicolysis. With regard to renal function, the additional use of epidural anaesthesia (functional "denervation" of the kidney) can be recommended especially for highly invasive surgical procedures to antagonize reduction of RBF, which is often induced sympathetically by pain or by commonly used anaesthetic drugs.