Table 7.

Analysis of the perfusion index measured by a transmittance pulse oximeter probe placed on the tongue or by a reflectance pulse oximeter probe placed on the tail and tibia in anesthetized dogs that had or had not received dexmedetomidine.

	n	Perfusion index m (min-max)	Perfusion index m (min-max)	P-value
Tongue vs. tail		Tongue	Tail
BUT	132	3/10 (1–10/10)	5/10 (1–10/10)	<0.0001
DEX	100	2/10 (1–10/10)	3/10 (1–10/10)	0.2904
Tongue vs. tibia		Tongue	Tibia
BUT	92	3/10 (1–10/10)	3/10 (1–9/10)	0.0744
DEX	60	2/10 (1–9/10)	2/10 (1–10/10)	0.2134
Tail vs. tibia		Tail	Tibia
BUT	85	5/10 (1–10/10)	3/10 (1–9/10)	<0.0001
DEX	49	3/10 (1–8/10)	2/10 (1–10/10)	0.3677

Values were only included if measurements for both positions were available and analyzed as paired values.

n, number of measurements; tongue, transmittance pulse oximeter probe placed on the tongue; tail, reflectance pulse oximeter probe placed on the ventral tail base; tibia, transmittance pulse oximeter probe placed on the medial aspect of the proximal tibia; BUT, premedication butorphanol 0.2 mg/kg IV; DEX, premedication dexmedetomidine 5 μg/kg + butorphanol 0.2 mg/kg IV; m, median. Bold values mean significant differences.