Maternal and fetal effects of propofol anaesthesia in the pregnant ewe

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of propofol (PRF) on maternal and fetal cardiopulmonary function during the last trimester of pregnancy. Six pregnant 2-3 year-old Ripollesa sheep, each weighing 78 ± 8 kg were used in the study and prepared by placing catheters in the maternal jugular vein and carotid artery. A catheter was also placed in the fetal femoral artery. Twenty-four hours later the sheep were anaesthetized with PRF (6 mg/kg intravenous (IV) followed by a continuous infusion at a rate of 0.4 mg/kg/min for 60 min) and cardiopulmonary data collected. Further data were collected for 105 min following termination of the infusion. The maternal mean arterial pressure (MAP) and diastolic arterial pressure (DAP) were significantly decreased (P < 0.05) during the first 15 min of the infusion period, while the maternal pH was also significantly decreased. Maternal PaCO2 and PaO2 were significantly increased throughout the total infusion period. It was further observed that the fetal pH decreased significantly, throughout the infusion period, whereas the fetal MAP, DAP and PaCO2 were significantly increased during the first 15 min of the infusion, after which time all parameters returned to control values. No differences in either maternal or fetal parameters were observed between control and recovery times. © 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.