Opioids are considered the "golden standard" in pain management for both humans and small animals, but is used less often in equine medicine - probably for fear of side effects. Are there any studies that suggest that side effects are a major problem, or is it lack of experience which is the greatest obstacle to use? As early as 1937 it was shown that morphine and morphine derivatives provide analgesia in horses. For species other than horses used Opioids often both pre-, intra-and postoperatively. They relieve pain effectively and are often included in the anesthesia protocol.

Objective: The objective was to examine the incidence of constipation, and the preventive measures taken in relation with postoperative pain treatment with Opioids at two orthopaedic surgery wards.Methods: The participants were patients that had undergone surgery in the back, hip or thigh. They were selected through systematic selection and a total of 46 electronic health records were examined. The factors investigated and tested for correlation with constipation were the usage of laxatives, daily fluid-intake and early mobilisation.Results: Totally, 26.1 % of the patients became constipated, and laxatives were prescribed to 65.2 % of the patients. Doctors prescribed 53.3 % of the laxatives, nurses 33.3 % and for the remaining 13.3 % it was uncertain who had written the prescription. Usage of laxatives seemed to cause constipation (p=0,025), whereas there was no correlation between constipation and early mobilization.

The intention of this study is to investigate possible excitation on dogs due to buprenorphine treatment. The reason for it to be about buprenorphine and not any other opioid is due to its relevance being one of the most popular Opioids in animal care, as well as the authors own experience with what seems to be buprenorphine induced excitation in her own dog. The study consists of a literature review and an internet based survey containing thirty questions sent out to twelve animal clinics and animal hospitals. Significant agitative effects on behavior has been found in studies on horses, sheep, goats, rats and mice, but no one shows the effects of buprenorphine on dogs. The literature on opiod effects on dog behavior seems sparse.

There is a need for correct and adequate pain assessment in horses. Methadone is used in pain management in horses but the full pharmacokinetic picture of methadone is not yet known. The aim of this pilot study was to develop a behaviour protocol and suggest a reliable recording method for use in a larger research project with an aim to potentially correlate behaviours to concentration of methadone in blood. In this study two coldblooded trotters were given methadone intravenously with doses of 0.1 mg/kg for horse 1 and 0.2 mg/kg for horse 2. The horses were videotaped pre and post methadone administration.

Det är svårt att upptäcka smärta hos fåglar samt se om den smärtlindring som administreras ger någon effekt. Fåglar kan likt andra djur inte tala om var de har ont någonstans och hur stark smärtan är. Det är svårt att mäta smärta objektivt hos dem, vilket gör det komplicerat att ställa upp vetenskapliga försök. Metoder som kan användas för att bedöma smärta är bland annat att titta på förändringar i beteenden och fysiologi hos skadade djur eller att mäta smärtan objektivt med olika typer av apparater. Fåglar känner smärta och behöver därmed smärtlindring i precis samma situationer som däggdjur. Opioider, NSAID-preparat, lokalanestetika, alfa2-agonister och kortikosteroider används alla som smärtlindring till såväl fåglar som däggdjur.

Dystoki drabbar omkring 16 % av alla dräktiga tikar i Sverige. Drygt hälften av dessa kejsarsnittas. Kejsarsnitt är ett kirurgiskt ingrepp som av djurvälfärdsskäl med fördel kan behandlas med smärtstillande läkemedel. I Sverige finns i dagsläget inget registrerat läkemedel för hund inom grupperna icke-steroida antitinflammatoriska läkemedel (NSAID) och opioider, som inte är kontraindicerat att använda vid dräktighet och digivning. Ändå är nämnda läkemedelsgrupper de som används i störst utsträckning för smärtlindring på hund.