An experimental study of tissue injury associated with reperfusion in ischemic limbs

Twenty adult mongrel dogs were divided into three groups. Group I: control (n = 7), group II: limb ischemia for 6 hours followed by reperfusion (n = 6), and group III: administration of alpha-tocopherol after 6 hours of ischemia, and reperfusion (n = 7). In group II, serum CPK and LPO increased after reperfusion with peak levels of 38,000 +/- 9,800 mU/ml and 20.4 +/- 3.7 nmol/ml respectively, which were significantly higher than those in group I. (CPK: p less than 0.02, LPO less than 0.03). In group III, the peak levels of serum CPK and LPO were regulated to the low level of 1,060 +/- 290 mU/ml and 9.2 +/- 4.5nmol/ml, respectively, which were significantly lower than those in group II. (CPK: p less than 0.02, LPO less than 0.04). Additional 13 dogs were divided into two groups in order to assess tissue LPO in the limb, liver, and kidney. Group A: control (n = 5), group B: reperfusion after 6 hours of ischemia (n = 8). Tissue LPO level of 1.89 +/- 0.74nmol/mg-protein in the gastrocnemius muscle in group B was significantly higher than that in group A (p less than 0.02), although there was no significant difference in the gracilis muscle, liver, and kidney. These results prove indirectly the participation of lipid peroxidative reaction by active oxygen in the mechanism of development of reperfusion injury, and suggest the preventive effect of alpha-tocopherol to reperfusion injury.