A clinical survey on the electrocardiogram after intravenous granisetron hydrochloride administration in clinically normal dogs

Cardiac side effect of 5-hydroxytryptamine-3 receptor antagonists has been a concern for clinicians. There is a substantial need for greater clarity about the safety of granisetron hydrochloride, an antiemetic agent of this class used in oncological and parvoviral gastroenteritis with acute vomiting in dogs.This study aimed to assess the electrocardiographic effects of a single dose of intravenous granisetron. We randomly assigned 16 adult crossbreed female healthy dogs into two groups of intervention and control and injected them intravenously with granisetron and normal saline, respectively, at a dose of 0.5 ml/kg over one minute. Standard electrocardiography (ECG) was recorded at the baseline, as well as 5, 15, 30, 60, 120, 360, and 720 minutes after the intervention. Heart rate and ECG parameters (PR intervals, QRS duration, ST-segment, T-wave amplitudes, QT, JT, QTc and JTc intervals) were evaluated in lead II.No significant difference was observed between the intervention and the control groups in any of the measured variables at any of the time-points. Mean values of measured parameters showed no significant difference compared with baseline values in the control group, while the granisetron group saw statistically significant but clinically asymptomatic changes in heart rate, PR, QRS, QT, JT, and QTc at different time-points, compared to the baseline values (P<0.05). In conclusion, Granisetron administration was not associated with clinically significant adverse effects on ECG variables or heart rate. Thus, it can be regarded as a relatively safe drug.