Dexmedetomidine alters the cardiovascular response during infra-renal aortic cross-clamping in sevoflurane-anesthetized dogs.

Some properties of the volatile anesthetics, such as vasodilatation and myocardial depression, combined with the sympathetic inhibition that alpha2-agonists can produce, may determine hemodynamic alterations during aortic surgery. The interaction between dexmedetomidine (DEX), an alpha2-agonist, and sevoflurane during aortic surgery is unknown. We studied the effects of DEX on hemodynamics and systemic oxygenation during aortic cross-clamping (Aox) and unclamping (UAox) in sevoflurane-anesthetized dogs.