J Korean Neurosurg Soc.  1988 Oct;17(5):887-896.

Therapeutic Effects of Naloxone in Experimental Spinal Cord Injury

• Kim YS
• Oh SH

Abstract

The effect of naloxone on blood flow was studied in cats subjected to 400 gm-cm contusion injuries of the thoracic spinal cord. Ten cats were treated with 10 mg/kg naloxone 45 to 60 minutes after injury. Ten cats were given 10 mL of saline instead of naloxone, and 10 cats were neither injured nor treated. Hydrogen clearance was used to measure blood flow in the lateral white column at the contusion site. Naloxone, given intravenously, significantly improved the blood flow rates in the lateral column white matter. At 2 hours after injury, the mean blood flow in the saline-treated cats fell to 6.01+/-0.90 mL/100 gm/min, whereas it increased 8.47+/-1.14 mL/100gm/min in naloxone-treated cats (p<0.05). The authors conclude that naloxone may be useful for spinal cord injury.

Keyword

Spinal cord injury; Naloxone; Spinal cord blood flow

MeSH Terms

Animals
Cats
Contusions
Hydrogen
Naloxone*
Spinal Cord Injuries*
Spinal Cord*
Hydrogen
Naloxone