The effect of intrathecal sufentanil preconditioning against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury.

OBJECTIVES

We aimed to investigate the cardioprotective effect and hemodynamic response of intrathecally administered sufentanil on myocardial IR injury.

BACKGROUND

Sufentanil, mu opioid receptor agonist, intravenously administered during clinical and experimental studies, has been shown to have a cardioprotective effect on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury.

METHODS

Thirty-two New Zealand type rabbits, which were anesthetized, were divided into four equal groups: sham, ischemia-reperfusion, sufentanil and ischemia-reperfusion+sufentanil. Sufentanil was administered intrathecally prior to ischemia. Hemodynamic parameters were monitored by electrocardiography and invasive arterial blood pressure measurements. In the ischemia-reperfusion groups, the degree of myocardial infarct was determined as the ratio of ischemic region to the risk area by a 1 % 2,3,5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride staining.

RESULTS

The mean infarct size in the ischemia-reperfusion group was 47.5 ± 7.0 %, whereas that of the ischemia-reperfusion+sufentanil group was found to be 34.2 ± 4.7 %, indicating a statistically significant difference (p = 0.002). The heart rate was different between the ischemia-reperfusion and the sufentanil groups for baseline measurement and between the ischemia-reperfusion and the ischemia-reperfusion+sufentanil groups at the 120th minutes measurement (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Intrathecal sufentanil appears to have a cardioprotective effect against myocardial ischemia--reperfusion injury in the experimental rabbit model (Tab. 1, Fig. 2, Ref. 19).