Lidocaine’s Ineffectiveness in Mitigating Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Pain and Peristaltic Effects in Horses

The present study involved seven horses in a randomized crossover clinical trial to evaluate the effect of lidocaine on horses with induced endotoxemia. Horses received intravenous lidocaine (1.5 mg/kg bolus, followed by 0.05 mg/kg bwt/min) or placebo (0.9% sodium chloride at the same manner) one hour before LPS administration (0.03 μg/kg, IV infusion over 30 min). We monitored clinic and hematologic parameters, abdominal auscultation, ultrasound, and pain over time. No relevant clinical differences existed between treatments regarding peristalsis, abdominal pain, or any other parameters before and after endotoxemia induction. These findings do not support the clinical use of lidocaine to mitigate abdominal pain and intestinal hypomotility promoted by endotoxemia in horses.