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BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT article

Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1516181
This article is part of the Research Topic Insights in Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology: 2024 View all articles

Flumazenil may improve gait and mentation in dogs presenting with marijuana toxicosis

Provisionally accepted
Alyson Hope Fitzgerald Alyson Hope Fitzgerald 1*Yuntao Zhang Yuntao Zhang 2Sam Stewart Sam Stewart 3Scott A Fritz Scott A Fritz 2Alex Lynch Alex Lynch 1Monique Ramras Monique Ramras 4Stacy D Meola Stacy D Meola 5
  • 1 North Carolina State University, Raleigh, United States
  • 2 Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, United States
  • 3 Ethos Discovery, Woburn, Massachusetts, United States
  • 4 Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States
  • 5 Wheat Ridge Animal Hospital, Wheat Ridge, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Introduction: Alongside the United States' growing landscape of legalized recreational marijuana intended for humans, cases of canine marijuana toxicosis have been on the rise. Most commonly these dogs have mild clinical signs and respond well to supportive therapies. However, patients might still be ataxic, unable to walk, or remain heavily sedated at the time of discharge. Our hypothesis was that flumazenil would improve the level of consciousness, brainstem reflexes, gait, and stance in dogs with marijuana toxicosis. Methods: Seventeen dogs presenting for marijuana toxicosis were enrolled. MGCS and Canine Marijuana Severity Score (CMSS), were used to assess level of consciousness, brain stem reflexes, gait, and stance. Flumazenil 0.01mg/kg was administered IV once. Baseline values immediately before flumazenil administration, 5 minutes, 15 minutes, and 30 minutes after flumazenil were recorded. Serum was collected and analyzed for delta-9-THC using ultraperformance liquid chromatography. Results: There was a significant change in MGCS and CMSS following flumazenil administration (P = 0.0033 and P = <0.001). The median CMSS at baseline was 17 (10-19), at 5 minutes was 18 (10-21), at 15 minutes was 18 (12-22) and at 30 minutes was 19 (14-22). There was a significant difference between the concentration of delta-9-THC and clinical sign score (p = 0.0275). Discussion: The administration of flumazenil to dog affected by marijuana toxicosis might result in improved gait, stance, and level of consciousness. There might be some discriminative ability of the CMSS to stratify the severity level of canine marijuana toxicosis.

    Keywords: tetrahydrocannabidiol, Ultraperformance liquid chromatography, Toxicology, marijuana, Flumazenil (FMZ)

    Received: 24 Oct 2024; Accepted: 02 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Fitzgerald, Zhang, Stewart, Fritz, Lynch, Ramras and Meola. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Alyson Hope Fitzgerald, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.