The effect of anesthesia with propofol and sedation with butorphanol on quantitative contrast-enhanced ultrasonography of the healthy feline kidney.

Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography of the left kidney was performed using a commercial contrast agent in six healthy adult purpose-bred cats. A cross-over design was used to compare three protocols: (1) awake, (2) butorphanol (0.4 mg/kg IM), and (3) propofol (3.5-7.7 mg/kg IV boluses to effect). Time-intensity curves were created from two regions-of-interest drawn in the renal cortex. The curves were analyzed for blood flow parameters representing blood volume (base intensity, peak intensity, area-under-curve) and blood velocity (arrival time, time-to-peak, wash-in/out). There was no difference in the subjective enhancement pattern between the three protocols. No significant effect of butorphanol was observed in any of the perfusion parameters (P > 0.05). Propofol did not influence the most important perfusion parameter, area-under-the-curve, and is adequate for use in contrast-enhanced ultrasound studies.