Distribution of methylene blue after injection into the epidural space of anaesthetized pregnant and non-pregnant sheep.

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the distribution of different volumes of methylene blue solution injected into the epidural space in anaesthetized pregnant and non-pregnant sheep, to evaluate its cranial distribution and to compare between them. Fifteen pregnant and fifteen non-pregnant sheep were included in the study. Sheep were anaesthetized and received 0.05, 0.1, or 0.2 mL/kg of a lumbosacral epidural solution containing 0.12% methylene blue in 0.9% saline. Thirty minutes after the epidural injection, the ewes were euthanized. The extension of the dye within the epidural space was measured, and the correlation between the volume of the dye injected and the number of stained vertebrae was evaluated. The cranial migration of the dye between pregnant and non-pregnant sheep was also compared. The results show that the volume of methylene blue injected epidurally into pregnant and non-pregnant sheep correlated directly with its cephalic distribution into the epidural space; and a volume of 0.1 mL/kg or 0.2 mL/kg stained up to the first lumbar segment in pregnant and non-pregnant sheep, respectively. Also, the results suggest that the volume of drugs administered into the epidural space of pregnant sheep should be half the volume that would be used in non-pregnant sheep.