The inflammatory response of two different kinds of anesthetics on vascular cognitive impairment rats and the effect on long term cognitive function.

Vascular cognitive impairment, caused by vascular injury and inflammation, affects brain function. Present treatment for vascular injury primarily relies on combination therapy of surgery with anesthesia. In this study, we sought to determine the effects of anesthetics, sevoflurane and fentanyl, on long-term cognitive function in brain tissue of rats, and potential correlations with inflammatory factors such as VEGF, IL-1β, TNF-α. We used shuttle box and water maze tests to study the cognitive function of Wistar rats. The results demonstrated that rats treated with sevoflurane or fentanyl performed less shock times and more active escape times compared with rats model undergoing vascular cognitive impairment. Treatment of anesthetics also shortened the periods of learning and memory incubation, suggesting a protective role in cognitive function. In addition, our results unraveled a reducing expression of TNF-α and IL-1β but an increasing level of VEGF in head tissues of rats implemented with anesthetics. These findings underscore the improving role of sevoflurane and fentanyl in the recovery of vascular cognitive impairment rats as well as the cognitive function in rats, by regulating the expression of inflammatory factors.