Comparison of the effects of oral or subcutaneous carprofen or ketoprofen in rats undergoing laparotomy

Rats undergoing laparotomy received either carprofen (5 mg/kg) or ketoprofe n (5 mg/kg) administered orally in flavoured gelatin, or by subcutaneous in jection. A control group that received no analgesic showed a significant (3 per cent) fall in bodyweight (P = 0.009) after laparotomy. This decrease w as greater than that seen in the groups receiving carprofen (P = 0.006) or ketoprofen (P = 0.012) administered subcutaneously, which continued to gain weight following surgery. All animals showed a significant fall in food co nsumption but this decrease was greater in the jelly alone group (47 per ce nt) than in the group receiving carprofen (17 per cent) (P = 0.015) adminis tered subcutaneously. A significant fall in water consumption occurred in t he control group (40 per cent) and in animals that received oral carprofen (13 per cent) or ketoprofen (22 per cent). No significant decrease was seen in groups receiving either carprofen or ketoprofen administered subcutaneo usly (P > 0.1). This study shows that a relatively simple surgical procedur e results in a major reduction in food and water consumption in rats. This reduction can be minimised by the administration of ketoprofen or carprofen (5 mg/kg subcutaneously). but higher dose rates are required if these drug s are to be administered by the oral route.