Comparison of invasive and non-invasive blood pressure in Cuniculus paca (Spotted paca)

Abstract

Cuniculus paca, a South American wild rodent with significant zoo-technical potential, often requires anaesthesia for management purposes. However, limited information is available regarding safe monitoring of this animal under anaesthesia. Therefore, this study aimed to compare and validate blood pressure values measured by a non-invasive method with invasive blood pressure monitoring in Cuniculus paca. Eight healthy adult female Cuniculus paca underwent general anaesthesia for follicular aspiration were enrolled. Systolic, diastolic, and mean arterial pressures were evaluated using both the non-invasive oscillometric method on the radial artery and the invasive method with a catheter placed in the dorsal metatarsal artery. These measurements were compared using the t-Student test, correlated using the Pearson test, and analysed using the Bland-Altman concordance test to determine the precision of the oscillometric method. The results indicated that only the systolic blood pressure measured by the non-invasive method was similar to the invasive pressure (P = 0.6372, r = 0.5969, and bias of 0.59 ± 20.9 mmHg). However, the mean and diastolic pressures were underestimated by the non-invasive method. In conclusion, the systolic blood pressure monitored using the oscillometric method provides a valid and reliable measurement for monitoring Cuniculus paca under general anaesthesia.