Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of local spinal cord cooling on spinal dorsal-horn neuronal activity, with special emphasis on the role of endogenous opioid. Methods. Decerebrate, spinal-cord-transected cats (n = 30) were subjected to local spinal-cord irrigation, using 0.9N saline solution (15°C; n = 15, and 35°C; n = 15) for 90 min. The extracellular, single-cell activity of spinal dorsal-horn neurons responding to noxious stimulation was recorded. Sixty-one minutes after induction of local spinal-cord irrigation, naloxone (0.1 mg·kg-1) was administered intravenously. Local spinal-cord blood flow was measured using the hydrogen clearance technique. Results. Local spinal cord cooling produced significant suppression of both spontaneous and evoked activity (33.1 ± 7.7% and 31.4 ± 5.5%, respectively; mean ± SE). Naloxone reversed this suppression immediately. Local spinal-cord blood flow was significantly reduced during spinal-cord cooling, but naloxone did not change local spinal-cord blood flow. Conclusion. The results demonstrate that endogenous opioids may play an important role in dorsal-horn neuronal suppression induced by local spinal-cord cooling.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 211-215 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Journal of Anesthesia |
Volume | 16 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2002 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Dorsal-horn neuron
- Hypothermia
- Naloxone
- Opioid
- Spinal cord
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine