Carboxyhemoglobin Dissociation Pattern by Age in the Rat

One, two, six and ten week old Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to carbon monoxide at 3,700 ppm for 30 minutes, and carboxyhemoglobin was measured immediateley. 5, 30, 60, 90, 120 minutes after the exposure. In each time after the exposure, the means of the carboxyhemoglobin levels were compared among the week age groups. The regression analysis was done using the natural logarithm of the carboxyhemoglobin concentration as a dependent variable and the time after the exposure as an independent vaiable. From the regression equation, the half lives of the carboxyhemoglobin were calculated. The one week old rats showed significantly higher carboxyhemoglobin level than other week age rats in the entire time after the exposure. The corrected carboxyhemoglobin concentration calculated by subtracting the normal carboxyhemoglobin level from the measured carboxyhemoglobin at each age group, showed no uniform differences.