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An online survey utilizing Survey Monkey linked through the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians listserve examined current practices in megavertebrate analgesia. Data collected included drugs administered, dosing regimens, ease of administration, efficacy, and adverse events. Fifty-nine facilities (38 housing elephants, 33 housing rhinoceroses) responded. All facilities administered nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), with phenylbutazone (0.25-10 mg/kg) and flunixin meglumine (0.2-4 mg/kg) being most common. Efficacy was reported as "good" to "excellent" for these medications. Opioids were administered to elephants (11 of 38) and rhinoceroses (7 of 33), with tramadol (0.5-3.0 mg/kg) and butorphanol (0.05-1.0 mg/kg) being most common. Tramadol efficacy scores were highly variable in both elephants and rhinoceroses. While drug choices were similar among institutions, substantial variability in dosing regimens and reported efficacy between and within facilities indicates the need for pharmacokinetic studies and standardized methods of analyzing response to treatment to establish dosing regimens and clinical trials to establish efficacy and safety.

ObjectiveTo determine the efficacy of lidocaine at reducing incidence of postoperative reflux (POR) in horses by using quantitative statistical analysis.Study designSystematic meta‐analytical review.Sample populationStudies on horses undergoing gastrointestinal surgery for small intestinal lesions, identified by systematic search between 2001 and 2017.MethodsA search with PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, and Google Scholar was performed, followed by secondary searches of veterinary trade journals and bibliographies of relevant articles. The primary outcome measure for this study was the effect of lidocaine therapy on the odds of POR. Subgroup analysis assessed included the timing of lidocaine therapy, incidence of mortality, and incidence of repeat celiotomy. A meta‐analysis was performed with a random effects model, with the effect size calculated as an odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Statistical significance was set at P < .05.ResultsAmong 1933 peer reviewed publications that met the initial search criteria, 12 relevant studies were available for analysis. Lidocaine was associated with an increased incidence of diagnosis of POR (OR 6.3, 95% CI [1.4, 27.0], P = .01). Horses treated with lidocaine were more likely to survive to discharge (OR 6.8, 95% CI [3.9, 11.7], P < .01).ConclusionLidocaine was associated with an increased survival rate in horses undergoing exploratory celiotomy for small intestinal disease according to this meta‐analysis of the recent literature.Clinical significanceThis body of published evidence provides support to administer lidocaine in horses to improve survival rather than preventing POR.

Although neocortical neuronal morphology has been documented in the adult giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) and African elephant (Loxodonta africana), no research has explored the cortical architecture in newborns of these species. To this end, the current study examined the morphology of neurons from several cortical areas in the newborn giraffe and elephant. After cortical neurons were stained with a modified Golgi technique (N = 153), dendritic branching and spine distributions were analyzed by using computer-assisted morphometry. The results showed that newborn elephant neurons were considerably larger in terms of all dendritic and spine measures than newborn giraffe neurons. Qualitatively, neurons in the newborns appeared morphologically comparable to those in their adult counterparts. Neurons in the newborn elephant differed considerably from those observed in other placental mammals, including the giraffe, particularly with regard to the morphology of spiny projection neurons. Projection neurons were observed in both species, with a much larger variety in the elephant (e.g., flattened pyramidal, nonpyramidal multipolar, and inverted pyramidal neurons). Although local circuit neurons (i.e., interneurons, neurogliaform, Cajal-Retzius neurons) resembled those observed in other eutherian mammals, these were usually spiny, which contrasts with their adult, aspiny equivalents. Newborn projection neurons were smaller than the adult equivalents in both species, but newborn interneurons were approximately the same size as their adult counterparts. Cortical neuromorphology in the newborn giraffe is thus generally consistent with what has been observed in other cetartiodactyls, whereas newborn and adult elephant morphology appears to deviate substantially from what is commonly observed in other placental mammals.