Gastroscopic Study of Meloxicam, Tramadol, and Their Combined Administration on the Development of Gastric Injuries in Dogs

Opioid and non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are commonly used to manage post-operative pain that may be chronically extended. Although NSAIDs have been approved for their analgesic effects in canine, they are mostly known to be associated with side effects, particularly gastric ulcers. In the present study, we evaluated short-term co-administration of meloxicam and tramadol to see if this could induce more gastric ulcers than that observed when using these drugs individually. Twenty adult mixed domestic dogs weighing 10 to 20 kg of both sexes, were randomly assigned to four groups of five dogs. In the control group, placebo was administered orally (twice a day), whereas the test groups received tramadol (per OS) twice a day, meloxicam (per OS) daily, and a combination of tramadol (twice a day) and meloxicam (daily) for ten days, respectively. The animals were evaluated for gastric injuries on days 0, 6, 11, 16 and 21 by endoscopy under general anesthesia. Clinical signs of all animals including fecal consistency, appetite, mental and hydration statuses, tempreture, heart rate and respiratory rate were evaluated daily. Based on our results, there was no significant difference between the experimental and control groups. In conclusion, our study demonstrated that a 10-day oral coadministration of tramadol and meloxicam had no deleterious effects on general health status and gastric mucosa in dogs.