Protective effects of abdominal aorta lidocaine infusion against spinal cord ischemia/reperfusion injury in rabbits

Objective To investigate the protective effect of abdominal aorta lidocaine infusion against spinal cord ischemia/reperfusion injury in rabbits.Methods Sixteen New Zealand white rabbits were evenly randomized into 2 groups: ischemic control group(group A) and lidocaine group(group B).The rabbits were endotracheally intubated and ventilated after intravenous anesthesia.The arterial pressure,electrocardiogram,percutaneous oxygen saturation,and rectal temperature were continuously monitored.The spinal cord ischemia was induced by infrarenal aortic occlusion for 30 min.The bilateral common iliac arteries were occluded simultaneously.During the occlusion,the rabbits were infused with normal saline(group A) and lidocaine(40 mg/kg,group B) at room temperature at a dose of 12 mL·kg-1·h-1.The arteries were reopened 30 min later.The neurological statuses of animals were assessed according to the Tarlov scale system at anesthesia recovery and 6,24,48 h after reperfusion.The lumbar segments of the spinal cord(L3-L5) were taken out under general anesthesia for pathological examination 48 h after reperfusion,and the pathomorphologically normal motor neurons were counted.Results Group B had significantly better neurological functions than those in group A at anesthesia recovery and 6,24,48 h after reperfusion(all P0.05).The histopathological results were consistent with the neurological scores,with the median numbers(P25-P75) of normal motor neurons being 1(0-2) and 9(5-11) in groups A and B,respectively(P0.05).Conclusion The results indicate that lidocaine infusion through the abdominal aorta during occlusion of abdominal aorta can relieve the ischemia/reperfusion injury of the spinal cord.