Medetomidine is often used to anesthetize rats during BOLD fMRI, yet the exact protocols for its administration differ across studies, compromising comparability and raising questions regarding the stability of fMRI measurements over several hours of anesthesia. We performed multiple repeated measurements of somatosensory and resting-state fMRI in medetomidine-anesthetized rats for up to six hours. Four different protocols of medetomidine administration were tested for their capacity to sustain stable measures of stimulus-evoked response and functional connectivity. The reported results are expected to help researchers in choosing the administration regime best suited for their needs.
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